Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates

Arbitrate, advise, adjudicate, or administer justice in a court of law. May sentence defendant in criminal cases according to government statutes or sentencing guidelines. May determine liability of defendant in civil cases.

Your day starts in chambers reviewing case files, legal briefs, and motions filed by attorneys on both sides of a dispute. By mid-morning you are on the bench, presiding over hearings—ruling on objections, questioning witnesses, and making sure courtroom proceedings are fair and orderly. Lunch might be spent researching case law and precedent to prepare for an afternoon sentencing or civil trial ruling.

The median annual salary for Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates in the US is $156,210. The middle 80% of workers earn between $50,670 and $222,120 annually. Entry-to-mid-career earners typically fall between $92,860 and $199,380.

The role is showing modest growth of 2% over the next decade. Current US employment is approximately 27,300 workers.

The typical entry education is a Doctoral or professional degree. Building a foundation in the top skills below will strengthen your application.

The most in-demand skills for this role include Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Judgment and Decision Making, Speaking, Writing. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.

Our AI-durability model gives Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates a score of 0.37 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at low AI exposure — the role's core work resists current-generation automation. It's a comparatively AI-durable choice within its field.

Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates has very high barrier to entry — very highly gated — extended graduate education, licensure, or years of specialised training are required.