Approval rates
Judge Stanley maintains a lifetime approval rate of 54% based on 25,316 decisions. In the most recent reporting period, his approval rate was 58%, which is 2 percentage points above the Lexington office average and 1 point above the state average. These figures reflect historical trends rather than predictions for your specific 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 Stanley'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 shown a consistent approach to disability adjudication. After an approval rate of 45% in 2018, the data shows an upward trend, reaching 59% in both 2024 and 2025. This indicates that your judge's recent decision-making has become more favorable compared to his earlier career averages.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Stanley'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 Stanley? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Lexington hearing office
The Lexington Hearing Office serves you and other claimants throughout Kentucky, managing a high volume of cases with a bench of 6 judges. The office currently maintains an average approval rate of 52%. You should be prepared for a thorough review of your medical documentation and vocational evidence when you appear at this office.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning you are assigned a judge randomly. Across the Lexington bench, lifetime approval rates for the 6 judges range from 46% to 54%. Because each judge brings a unique perspective to the evidence, understanding the office-wide environment is helpful for your preparation.
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.