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Updated July 2026 · SSA Public
Hearing Office
MILWAUKEE
Avg processing
261days
-5 vs national
Processing time
261
8.7 months
Hearing wait
8.0
months (current)
Cases pending
2,493
FY receipts
2,863
FY dispositions
2,124
Active judges
7
Video hearings
14%
of hearings held
Avg approval rate
51.4%
-6.3 vs avg
Backlog ratio
1.35
Growing
Rank
#92
of 160
Processing time in context
Fastest · 72 daysAvg · 266 daysSlowest · 680 days
The draw · approval spread across 7 judges
44%
59%
0%Median 53.8%100%
At MILWAUKEE, approval rates range from 44.0% (Syrjanen, Dean) to 58.5% (O'Grady, Margaret J) — a 15-pointspread. Assignment is effectively the luck of the draw, so the judge a case lands with can matter more than the office’s average. Plan for the median (53.8%), not the best case.
Judges at MILWAUKEE (7)
| Judge | Approval | Decisions | Favorable | Denied | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| O'Grady, Margaret J | 58.5% | 287 | 168 | 119 | |
| Shenkenberg, William | 56.0% | 323 | 181 | 142 | |
| Schwalbach, Nicholas J. | 54.2% | 384 | 208 | 176 | |
| Bedwell, Brent C | 53.8% | 338 | 182 | 156 | |
| Rouf, Arman | 44.3% | 332 | 147 | 185 | |
| Sammer, Julie | 44.1% | 238 | 105 | 133 | |
| Syrjanen, Dean | 44.0% | 182 | 80 | 102 |