Approval rates
When evaluating your hearing, it is helpful to look at how a judge's approval rate compares to broader benchmarks. Judge Key has maintained a 38% lifetime approval rate over 14,881 decisions. This figure sits below the national latest approval rate of 58%. These numbers provide a high-level view of past activity but do not account for the specific medical evidence in your file.
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 Key'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 7-year tenure, Judge Key has presided over 14,881 decisions. The yearly trend shows fluctuation, starting at 52% in 2016 and moving through various intervals, including a low of 30% in 2021 before rising to 43% in 2022. This pattern suggests that approval outcomes vary based on the specific reporting period and case mix.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Key'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 Key? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Creve Coeur hearing office
The Creve Coeur Hearing Office serves a significant volume of claimants across the region. With a bench of 6 judges, the office manages a caseload that requires consistent adherence to regulations. You can expect a formal environment where the quality of medical documentation is paramount to the outcome of your hearing. You can visit the Creve Coeur Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Within the Creve Coeur hearing office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 judges vary widely, ranging from 38% to 84%. You may find yourself before a judge with a different history than Judge Key, though the preparation process remains consistent.
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.