diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/utils/deepLinkScroll.spec.ts b/frontend/src/lib/utils/deepLinkScroll.spec.ts
index 20f0cf19..df8d9156 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/utils/deepLinkScroll.spec.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/utils/deepLinkScroll.spec.ts
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ function buildOpts(overrides: Overrides = {}): DeepLinkScrollOptions {
 	return {
 		transcribeMode: true,
 		setTranscribeMode: vi.fn(),
+		setPanelMode: vi.fn(),
 		loadBlocks: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
 		setActiveAnnotationId: vi.fn(),
 		flashAnnotation: vi.fn(),
@@ -126,4 +127,26 @@ describe('scrollToCommentFromQuery', () => {
 
 		expect(opts.onStripUrl).toHaveBeenCalled();
 	});
+
+	it('forces panel mode to "edit" so the comment DOM exists on reviewed documents', async () => {
+		const url = new URL(
+			`https://app/documents/doc-1?commentId=${COMMENT_ID}&annotationId=${ANNOTATION_ID}`
+		);
+		const opts = buildOpts();
+
+		await scrollToCommentFromQuery(url, opts);
+
+		expect(opts.setPanelMode).toHaveBeenCalledWith('edit');
+	});
+
+	it('forces panel mode to "edit" even when transcribe mode is already on', async () => {
+		const url = new URL(
+			`https://app/documents/doc-1?commentId=${COMMENT_ID}&annotationId=${ANNOTATION_ID}`
+		);
+		const opts = buildOpts({ transcribeMode: true });
+
+		await scrollToCommentFromQuery(url, opts);
+
+		expect(opts.setPanelMode).toHaveBeenCalledWith('edit');
+	});
 });
diff --git a/frontend/src/lib/utils/deepLinkScroll.ts b/frontend/src/lib/utils/deepLinkScroll.ts
index cc0d49c9..f221cdc4 100644
--- a/frontend/src/lib/utils/deepLinkScroll.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/lib/utils/deepLinkScroll.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 export type DeepLinkScrollOptions = {
 	transcribeMode: boolean;
 	setTranscribeMode: (value: boolean) => void;
+	setPanelMode: (mode: 'read' | 'edit') => void;
 	loadBlocks: () => Promise<void>;
 	setActiveAnnotationId: (id: string) => void;
 	flashAnnotation: (annotationId: string) => void;
@@ -25,6 +26,11 @@ export async function scrollToCommentFromQuery(
 		await opts.loadBlocks();
 	}
 
+	// Comments only render in edit mode — force it so the deep-link target
+	// exists in the DOM even if the document already has reviewed transcriptions
+	// (which default the panel to read mode).
+	opts.setPanelMode('edit');
+
 	opts.setActiveAnnotationId(annotationId);
 	await opts.afterTick();
 
diff --git a/frontend/src/routes/documents/[id]/+page.svelte b/frontend/src/routes/documents/[id]/+page.svelte
index c0e67381..06a38484 100644
--- a/frontend/src/routes/documents/[id]/+page.svelte
+++ b/frontend/src/routes/documents/[id]/+page.svelte
@@ -40,6 +40,10 @@ let activeAnnotationId = $state<string | null>(null);
 let highlightBlockId = $state<string | null>(null);
 let flashAnnotationId = $state<string | null>(null);
 let pdfStripExpanded = $state(false);
+// Flag set by the deep-link helper so the transcribe-mode $effect does not
+// overwrite the panelMode it picked (e.g. forcing 'edit' on notification
+// click-through). One-shot: consumed after the effect's loadBlocks resolves.
+let skipInitialPanelMode = $state(false);
 
 const prefersReducedMotion = $derived(
 	typeof window !== 'undefined' && window.matchMedia('(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)').matches
@@ -281,7 +285,11 @@ async function checkOcrStatus() {
 $effect(() => {
 	if (transcribeMode) {
 		loadTranscriptionBlocks().then(() => {
-			panelMode = transcriptionBlocks.length > 0 ? 'read' : 'edit';
+			if (skipInitialPanelMode) {
+				skipInitialPanelMode = false;
+			} else {
+				panelMode = transcriptionBlocks.length > 0 ? 'read' : 'edit';
+			}
 		});
 		checkOcrStatus();
 	}
@@ -309,6 +317,10 @@ onMount(() => {
 	scrollToCommentFromQuery(new URL(page.url), {
 		transcribeMode,
 		setTranscribeMode: (v) => (transcribeMode = v),
+		setPanelMode: (m) => {
+			skipInitialPanelMode = true;
+			panelMode = m;
+		},
 		loadBlocks: loadTranscriptionBlocks,
 		setActiveAnnotationId: (id) => (activeAnnotationId = id),
 		flashAnnotation: (annotationId) => {