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Updated June 2026 · SSA Public

Market opportunity · GA

Strong market

Georgia.

Roughly 73,083 new disability claims are filed in Georgia each year. At a 20% retention rate and a conservative $6,900 fee per retained case, the addressable fee pool is approximately $101M annually.

Annual DDS intake

73,083

Initial claims / year

DDS approval

34.9%

Nat'l: 39.8%

Avg office wait

247 days

Nat'l hearing: 365 days

Fee pool (est.)

$101M

Annualized · retention × cap

01 · Bench

Top 5 ALJs by approval rate.

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

ALJOfficeApprovalDecisions
McHenry, LauraATLANTA DOWNTOWN89.8%127
McIntyre, MelindaCOVINGTON GA88.2%280
Littlefield, Suzanne A.ATLANTA DOWNTOWN82.4%176
Grounds, SonyaCOVINGTON GA78.4%125
McAdam, PaulCOVINGTON GA78.2%261

02 · Offices

Hearing-office timing.

Fastest

  • SAVANNAH224 days
  • ATLANTA NORTH240 days
  • ATLANTA DOWNTOWN255 days

Slowest

  • MACON258 days
  • COVINGTON GA256 days
  • ATLANTA DOWNTOWN255 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.