Approval rates
When reviewing the performance of an ALJ, it is helpful to compare their lifetime approval rate against the latest office and national benchmarks. Judge Massengill has presided over 13,830 decisions during his 9-year tenure, providing a substantial data set for analysis. While his latest approval rate of 49% is lower than the 66% seen across the Baltimore office, these metrics provide context for your hearing preparation rather than predicting your specific outcome.
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 Massengill'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 9 years on the bench, Judge Massengill has seen his approval rates fluctuate, moving from a high in 2017 to a period of lower approval between 2021 and 2022. More recently, the data shows an upward trend, with approval rates reaching 56% in 2024 and 53% in 2025. This recent shift suggests a departure from the lower approval levels seen in the middle of his tenure, reflecting changes in the complexity of cases or the quality of evidence presented in the courtroom.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Massengill'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 Massengill? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Baltimore hearing office
The Baltimore Hearing Office serves a large population in Maryland and manages a high volume of disability claims. With 6 judges on the bench, the office maintains an office-wide latest approval rate of 66%. If you are appearing here, you should be prepared for a formal process that prioritizes detailed medical records and clear testimony regarding your work limitations.
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 Baltimore Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 judges range from 46% to 81%. Because you cannot choose your judge, it is important to focus on the strength of your medical evidence and vocational testimony regardless of your assignment.
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.