Approval rates
Comparing a judge's performance requires looking at both lifetime averages and recent trends. Judge Meyr has maintained a 52% approval rate over his 10-year tenure. In the most recent reporting period, his approval rate was 0%, which sits 2 points below the current St Louis Hearing Office average of 54%. 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 Meyr'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 Meyr has presided over 18,560 decisions. His approval rate has fluctuated, starting at 58% in 2016 and stabilizing near the 54% mark in 2023 and 2024. The most recent data shows a temporary deviation, which may reflect changes in case mix or evidence quality rather than a permanent shift in judicial philosophy. This trend pattern suggests a judge who has historically remained within a predictable range of outcomes.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Meyr'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 Meyr? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the St Louis hearing office
The St Louis Hearing Office serves a large population across Missouri, managing a high volume of disability claims with a bench of 6 judges. The office currently maintains an approval rate of 54%, which is slightly lower than the national average. You can expect a standard hearing process focused on your medical documentation and vocational testimony. You can see the St Louis Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases through a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. At the St Louis Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 41% to 70%. This variance highlights why it is important to focus on the strength of your medical evidence regardless of the specific judge assigned to your hearing.
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.