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Updated June 2026 · SSA Public

Market opportunity · AR

Strong market

Arkansas.

Roughly 26,249 new disability claims are filed in Arkansas each year. At a 20% retention rate and a conservative $6,900 fee per retained case, the addressable fee pool is approximately $36M annually.

Annual DDS intake

26,249

Initial claims / year

DDS approval

37.7%

Nat'l: 39.8%

Avg office wait

247 days

Nat'l hearing: 365 days

Fee pool (est.)

$36M

Annualized · retention × cap

01 · Bench

Top 5 ALJs by approval rate.

Judges currently on the bench in Arkansas hearing offices, sorted by favorable decision rate. Use these to prioritize which office a case is assigned to, where permissible.

ALJOfficeApprovalDecisions
Engel, DavidTULSA OHO91.5%165
Goree, John HLITTLE ROCK70.7%338
McGee, ElisabethFORT SMITH66.9%329
Ferguson, Mark SLITTLE ROCK58.7%433
Jones, BillFORT SMITH55.9%367

02 · Offices

Hearing-office timing.

Fastest

  • LITTLE ROCK217 days
  • FORT SMITH276 days

Slowest

  • FORT SMITH276 days
  • LITTLE ROCK217 days

Methodology · Figures reflect SSA public data through the latest release. Fee pool estimates annualize DDS intake at a conservative 20% retention rate with a 75% cap hit on retained backpay — not a performance guarantee. Approval rates describe historical decisions, not likelihoods on individual cases.