Judicial law clerks
SOC Code: 23-1012
Judicial law clerks carries a 54% AI exposure score (High automation risk), with a median annual wage of $60,400 and +2.5% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 14,500 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 54% AI exposure, Judicial law clerks sits 17 points above the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 91% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
39/100
Judicial law clerks, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage C- $60,400
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth C- +2.5%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) F 54% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Judicial law clerks in the High band.
Credential × growth standing
Graduate credential among the thinner entry shelves
Judicial law clerks is in the Graduate band (113 of 832) with BLS pace Average (378/832). Graduate entry is a minority shelf - pairing it with average growth is the standing that separates this SOC from bachelor-dominated neighbors.
Where Judicial law clerks sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Judicial law clerks sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
54% Higher than most higher than 91% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Judicial law clerks vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Judicial law clerks is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Judicial law clerks's High automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score in the 40–70% range indicates meaningful automation pressure on specific task categories, but the role as a whole still requires human judgment for coordination, exception handling, or client interaction.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 23-1012) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Judicial law clerks be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Judicial law clerks. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Prepare briefs, legal memoranda, or statements of issues involved in cases, including appropriate suggestions or recommendations.
- 2. Research laws, court decisions, documents, opinions, briefs, or other information related to cases before the court.
- 3. Draft or proofread judicial opinions, decisions, or citations.
- 4. Confer with judges concerning legal questions, construction of documents, or granting of orders.
- 5. Review complaints, petitions, motions, or pleadings that have been filed to determine issues involved or basis for relief.
- 6. Keep abreast of changes in the law and inform judges when cases are affected by such changes.
- 7. Attend court sessions to hear oral arguments or record necessary case information.
- 8. Enter information into computerized court calendar, filing, or case management systems.
- 9. Verify that all files, complaints, or other papers are available and in the proper order.
- 10. Review dockets of pending litigation to ensure adequate progress.
Key Skills Required
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Writing
- Speaking
- Active Learning
- Complex Problem Solving
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Time Management
- Learning Strategies
Knowledge Areas
- Law and Government
- English Language
- Administrative
- Computers and Electronics
- Public Safety and Security
- Administration and Management
- Communications and Media
- Customer and Personal Service
- History and Archeology
- Economics and Accounting
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Judicial law clerks?
Judicial law clerks has an AI exposure score of 54%, indicating a high level of automation risk. Some tasks in this role can be augmented or partially automated by AI, but core responsibilities require human judgment.
What is the job outlook for Judicial law clerks?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Judicial law clerks is projected to grow by 2.5% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 14,500 workers.
What skills are needed for Judicial law clerks?
Key skills for Judicial law clerks include Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, and others. Typical entry-level education is Doctoral or professional degree.
How much do Judicial law clerks earn?
The median annual wage for Judicial law clerks is $60,400, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Judicial law clerks?
The typical entry-level education for Judicial law clerks is Doctoral or professional degree. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves None. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Judicial law clerks?
Judicial law clerks roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
High automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. A moderate share of tasks may be augmented by AI tools.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Judicial law clerks: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (54% here).
- Bill and account collectors · AI exposure 54%
- Computer programmers · AI exposure 54%
- Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks · AI exposure 54%
- Locomotive engineers · AI exposure 54%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+2.5% here).
- Building cleaning workers, all other · growth +2.5%
- Dietetic technicians · growth +2.5%
- Education administrators, all other · growth +2.5%
- First-line supervisors of farming, fishing, and forestry workers · growth +2.5%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
What to do with this
Use Judicial law clerks' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Judicial law clerks side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).