Approval rates
Judge Kinnell maintains a lifetime approval rate of 56%, calculated from a docket of 22,196 decisions. In the most recent reporting period, the judge recorded an approval rate of 61%, compared to the 60% average for the Dallas Downtown Hearing Office and the 58% national average. These figures provide a statistical baseline for understanding the judge's history. 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 Kinnell'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 10-year tenure, your judge has seen fluctuations in approval rates, ranging from a low of 49% in 2023 to a high of 61% in 2025. The data shows a recent upward trend, with the latest period's 61% approval rate diverging from the long-term lifetime average. This shift may reflect changes in the complexity of cases or the quality of evidence presented in recent years. The current pattern suggests a return to higher approval levels compared to the mid-tenure dip.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Kinnell'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 Kinnell? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Dallas Downtown hearing office
The Dallas Downtown Hearing Office serves a large population in Texas, managing a high volume of disability claims with a bench of 6 judges. The office currently maintains an approval rate of 60%, reflecting regional trends in SSDI adjudication. You should be prepared for a rigorous review of your medical records and vocational history. You can see the Dallas Downtown 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 the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Within the Dallas Downtown Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench vary significantly, ranging from 49% to 69%. Because you cannot choose your judge, it is important to focus on the strength of your medical evidence. For preparation purposes, the guidance is the same regardless of which judge you are assigned.
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.