Market opportunity · IA
Prime marketIowa.
Roughly 17,467 new disability claims are filed in Iowa each year. At a 20% retention rate and a conservative $6,900 fee per retained case, the addressable fee pool is approximately $24M annually.
17,467
Initial claims / year
43.9%
Nat'l: 39.8%
237 days
Nat'l hearing: 365 days
$24M
Annualized · retention × cap
01 · Bench
Top 5 ALJs by approval rate.
Judges currently on the bench in Iowa hearing offices, sorted by favorable decision rate. Use these to prioritize which office a case is assigned to, where permissible.
| ALJ | Office | Approval | Decisions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton, Henry | DES MOINES | 82.9% | 70 |
| Gordon, Matthew | DES MOINES | 64.4% | 340 |
| Priester, John | DES MOINES | 57.3% | 377 |
| Larner, Michael | DES MOINES | 55.1% | 305 |
| Mills III, John P | DES MOINES | 50.8% | 132 |
02 · Offices
Hearing-office timing.
Fastest
- DES MOINES237 days
Slowest
- DES MOINES237 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.