Approval rates
Comparing a judge's approval rate to regional and national benchmarks provides context for your hearing environment. Judge Bock's 37% lifetime approval rate is evaluated against the latest 54% office average and 58% national average. These figures are derived from a significant docket of 5,331 lifetime decisions, offering a stable view of historical trends. Aggregate rates describe past decisions, not predictions for your individual hearing.
Office- and national-level breakdowns of fully favorable vs denial rates aren't currently published by SSA in the per-office disposition data. The judge's own breakdown is the detail we have today.
Approval rate over time
Year-over-year approval rate across Judge Bock's docket. Annual rates fluctuate with the mix of cases SSA assigns; the longer-run pattern is more informative than any single year.
Decision pattern
Over a 2-year tenure, Judge Bock has demonstrated a steady approach to disability claims. The data shows an approval rate of 35% in 2016 followed by 38% in 2017, indicating a consistent decision-making pattern across the reporting period. This stability suggests that the judge's approach to evidence and testimony has remained largely uniform.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Bock's bench. Judge-specific preparation guidance requires a corpus of public Appeals Council decisions involving each judge, which we haven't built yet.
- Bring a clean treating-physician record. Longitudinal primary-care or specialist notes spanning the disability period, with consistent symptom documentation, are typically the strongest evidence at hearing. A single month's records usually aren't enough.
- Don't rely on consultative exams alone. If your medical evidence is built primarily around a one-time CE finding, expect detailed questioning. Supplement with treating-source statements where possible.
- Prepare for daily-activity questions. Have honest, specific answers about a typical day. Answers that conflict with the medical record (in either direction) tend to hurt credibility.
- Expect transferable-skills probing. A vocational expert will usually testify about jobs available to someone with your limitations. Your representative should be prepared to cross-examine.
Hearing with Judge Bock? See if a free benefits review fits your case.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Kansas City hearing office
The Kansas City (Missouri) hearing office serves a wide population across the region, managing a high volume of disability claims. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains a current approval rate of 54%. You can expect a formal process focused on the medical and vocational evidence presented in your file. You can see the Kansas City (Missouri) Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration utilizes a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Within the Kansas City (Missouri) hearing office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 28% to 61%. Because of this variance, understanding the broader office environment is as important as looking at any single judge. You can find more information on the Kansas City (Missouri) hearing office page.
Your odds change dramatically with a lawyer
SSDI hearing approval rates — represented vs. on your own
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-18-37. The 3× gap is a population-wide average across all judges; individual outcomes vary.