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Updated July 2026 · SSA Public
Hearing Office
SPOKANE
Avg processing
294days
+28 vs national
Processing time
294
9.8 months
Hearing wait
9.0
months (current)
Cases pending
1,933
FY receipts
1,882
FY dispositions
1,124
Active judges
6
Video hearings
10%
of hearings held
Avg approval rate
69.3%
+11.5 vs avg
Backlog ratio
1.67
Growing
Rank
#140
of 160
Processing time in context
Fastest · 72 daysAvg · 266 daysSlowest · 680 days
The draw · approval spread across 6 judges
47%
83%
0%Median 68.5%100%
At SPOKANE, approval rates range from 47.4% (Shumway, Jesse) to 82.6% (Walker, Donna) — a 35-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 (68.5%), not the best case.
Judges at SPOKANE (6)
| Judge | Approval | Decisions | Favorable | Denied | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walker, Donna | 82.6% | 287 | 237 | 50 | |
| Stallings, Stewart | 71.5% | 256 | 183 | 73 | |
| Freund, Lori L | 69.5% | 269 | 187 | 82 | |
| Chess, Laura | 67.6% | 293 | 198 | 95 | |
| O'Brien-Persons, Wynne | 61.3% | 75 | 46 | 29 | |
| Shumway, Jesse | 47.4% | 154 | 73 | 81 |