Approval rates
Comparing a judge's history to broader benchmarks provides context for your upcoming hearing. Judge Munday's lifetime approval rate of 39% is evaluated against the latest office average of 44% and the national average of 58%. These figures are derived from a significant docket of 20,772 lifetime decisions, offering a clear view of historical trends. 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 Munday'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 10 years on the bench, Judge Munday has maintained a steady approach to disability adjudication. While the approval rate was 31% in 2016, recent years have shown a more consistent range, with 41% approval in 2025. The latest reporting period shows an approval rate of 40%, which aligns closely with the long-term lifetime average. This consistency suggests a predictable approach to case evaluation that remains stable over time.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Munday'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 Munday? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Charlottesville hearing office
The Charlottesville Hearing Office serves you and other claimants throughout the region, managing a high volume of disability cases. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains its own operational standards and local approval trends. You can expect a professional environment focused on the thorough review of medical evidence. You can visit the Charlottesville 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 your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Across the Charlottesville Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 39% to 82%. Because each judge manages their courtroom differently, understanding the office-wide environment is helpful. For preparation purposes, the guidance remains consistent 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.