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Updated June 2026 · SSA Public

Market opportunity · MD

Prime market

Maryland.

Roughly 26,628 new disability claims are filed in Maryland each year. At a 20% retention rate and a conservative $6,900 fee per retained case, the addressable fee pool is approximately $37M annually.

Annual DDS intake

26,628

Initial claims / year

DDS approval

43.8%

Nat'l: 39.8%

Avg office wait

312 days

Nat'l hearing: 365 days

Fee pool (est.)

$37M

Annualized · retention × cap

01 · Bench

Top 5 ALJs by approval rate.

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

ALJOfficeApprovalDecisions
Forrest-Doyle, MaryBALTIMORE85.4%164
Manico, William M.BALTIMORE72.7%22
Neely, DonaldBALTIMORE69.1%265
Borda, EricPHILADELPHIA67.8%177
Grunberg, HopePHILADELPHIA EAST66.7%3

02 · Offices

Hearing-office timing.

Fastest

  • BALTIMORE291 days
  • NHC BALTIMORE332 days

Slowest

  • NHC BALTIMORE332 days
  • BALTIMORE291 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.