Approval rates
Judge Comisky’s approval rate is calculated based on 21,091 lifetime decisions made over his 10-year tenure. In the most recent reporting period, his 54% approval rate aligns with the Kansas City office average but remains 15 percentage points below the national average. These statistics provide a broad view of his judicial history, though they do not predict the outcome of any 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 Comisky'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 his 10 years on the bench, Judge Comisky has seen his approval rates fluctuate, ranging from a low of 29% in 2021 to 54% in 2025. This upward trend in recent years shows a departure from his historical average. Understanding these trends is helpful, but the strength of your medical evidence remains the most critical factor in your case.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Comisky'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.
About the Kansas City hearing office
The Kansas City (Missouri) Hearing Office serves a broad population across the region, managing a high volume of disability claims. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains an active docket that requires consistent case management. You can expect a formal process where medical documentation and vocational testimony are prioritized. You can visit the Kansas City (Missouri) Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Across the Kansas City hearing office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 28% to 61%. This variation highlights why it is important to focus on the merits of your own claim regardless of who is presiding.
Your odds change dramatically with a lawyer
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-18-37. The 3× gap is a population-wide average across all judges; individual outcomes vary.