Approval rates
Comparing a judge's lifetime performance against current office and national benchmarks provides a clearer picture of the hearing landscape. While the national average approval rate currently sits at 58%, Judge Hostovich has maintained a 41% lifetime approval rate over 17,094 decisions. These figures are derived from years of data, offering a stable view of historical patterns. 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 Hostovich'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 9-year tenure, your approval patterns for Judge Hostovich have shown notable shifts. After an initial period of higher approval rates, the data indicates a decline followed by a recent, steady recovery toward the 50% mark in 2025. This latest period reflects a continuation of a positive trend, suggesting that recent case outcomes are diverging from the lower rates observed in the early 2020s. These fluctuations often reflect changes in case mix or the quality of evidence presented in your filings.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Hostovich'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 Hostovich? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Pittsburgh hearing office
The Pittsburgh Hearing Office serves a significant population across Pennsylvania, managing a high volume of disability claims. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains an approval rate that fluctuates based on the complex needs of the local population. You can expect a rigorous review process focused on your medical documentation and vocational evidence. See the Pittsburgh 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. Across the Pittsburgh bench, lifetime approval rates range from 28% to 57%. This variance highlights why understanding the broader office environment is as important as focusing on a single judge. You can find more information on the Pittsburgh 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.