Legal
Administrative Law Judges
SOC 23-1021
Hear and decide disputes over benefits, licenses, and regulation.
The job
Median pay
$118k
$81k to $160k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Stable
0.0% projected
Openings a year
500
BLS projection
Typical education
Doctoral (JD) plus bar
Our model
AI displacement risk
Moderate
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
45/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
93rd pct
More exposed than 93% of occupations · modeled estimate · 49th pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
62/100
Key skills
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Writing
- Speaking
- Active Learning
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 1,986 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $149k~ |
| New York | 1,400 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $123k |
| Texas | 1,300 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $100k |
| Pennsylvania | 800 | 0.1 | 1.3× | $98k |
| Ohio | 690 | 0.1 | 1.2× | $79k |
| Florida | 570 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $116k |
| Illinois | 550 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $105k |
| Georgia | 490 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $68k |
| Oregon | 480 | 0.2 | 2.3× | $89k |
| Virginia | 463 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $127k~ |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland | 430 | 0.2 | 1.5× | $133k |
| Michigan | 390 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $127k |
| Tennessee | 380 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $108k |
| Arkansas | 340 | 0.3 | 2.5× | $64k |
| New Jersey | 330 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $128k |
| Washington | 330 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $122k |
| Arizona | 300 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $123k |
| Connecticut | 300 | 0.2 | 1.7× | $95k |
| Washington DC | 300 | 0.4 | 4.1× | $181k |
| Massachusetts | 270 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $114k |
| North Carolina | 260 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $130k |
| Colorado | 220 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $121k |
| Utah | 190 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $103k |
| Nevada | 170 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $87k |
| Missouri | 160 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $130k |
| Louisiana | 140 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $126k |
| New Mexico | 140 | 0.2 | 1.5× | $81k |
| Kentucky | 133 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $90k~ |
| South Carolina | 130 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $95k |
| Maine | 120 | 0.2 | 1.8× | $76k |
| Minnesota | 120 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $126k |
| Idaho | 110 | 0.1 | 1.2× | $65k |
| Mississippi | 110 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $66k |
| Montana | 90 | 0.2 | 1.7× | $84k |
| Oklahoma | 90 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $123k |
| West Virginia | 90 | 0.1 | 1.2× | $79k |
| Iowa | 80 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $124k |
| Alabama | 70 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $135k |
| Delaware | 70 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $57k |
| Indiana | 70 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $145k |
| Wisconsin | 60 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $132k |
| Rhode Island | 56 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $90k~ |
| New Hampshire | 51 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $102k~ |
| Hawaii | 50 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $106k |
| Kansas | 40 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $127k |
| Nebraska | 30 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $117k |
| Alaska | 28 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $123k~ |
| South Dakota | 28 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $102k~ |
| Vermont | 28 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $116k~ |
| North Dakota | 27 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $93k~ |
| Wyoming | 22 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $75k~ |
Top metro areas
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ1,230 jobs · $131k median
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV660 jobs · $152k median
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX420 jobs · $124k median
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA390 jobs · $72k median
- Columbus, OH390 jobs · $77k median
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD390 jobs · $95k median
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN350 jobs · $122k median
- Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR320 jobs · $65k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Administrative Law Judges interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.