Legal · Holland code ECS

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. May perform wedding ceremonies.

Also called: District Court Judge, Judge, Magistrate, Superior Court Judge, Circuit Court Judge, Circuit Judge, County Judge, Court of Appeals Judge.

O*NET 23-1023.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $153,990; Middle half earn $85,710 to $194,950. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: Doctoral Degree; 66% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 5 of 5; Extensive preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Sentence defendants in criminal cases, on conviction by jury, according to applicable government statutes.
Rule on custody and access disputes, and enforce court orders regarding custody and support of children.
Monitor proceedings to ensure that all applicable rules and procedures are followed.
Instruct juries on applicable laws, direct juries to deduce the facts from the evidence presented, and hear their verdicts.
Write decisions on cases.
Read documents on pleadings and motions to ascertain facts and issues.
Rule on admissibility of evidence and methods of conducting testimony.
Preside over hearings and listen to allegations made by plaintiffs to determine whether the evidence supports the charges.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Active Listening5.0 / 5
Critical Thinking4.9 / 5
Reading Comprehension4.3 / 5
Writing4.1 / 5
Speaking4.1 / 5
Active Learning4.0 / 5

Knowledge areas

Law and Government4.9 / 5
English Language4.5 / 5
Administration and Management3.6 / 5
Psychology3.4 / 5
Customer and Personal Service3.3 / 5
Public Safety and Security3.1 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic22
Investigative47
Artistic20
Social49
Enterprising71
Conventional52

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

court administrator · DE Gerichtsverwalter/Gerichtsverwalterin · FR chef de juridiction
prosecutor · DE Staatsanwalt/Staatsanwältin · FR procureur/procureure
judge · DE Richter/Richterin · FR juge
supreme court judge · DE Richter am Obersten Gerichtshof/Richterin am Obersten Gerichtshof · FR juge de la juridiction suprême
justice of the peace · DE Friedensrichter/Friedensrichterin · FR juge d’instance
court jury coordinator · DE Gerichtskoordinator/Gerichtskoordinatorin · FR coordonnateur de jury de cour/coordonnatrice de jury de cour

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Senior officers in fire, ambulance, prison and related services (1163)8,000 employed
Solicitors and lawyers (2412)216,100 employed
Legal associate professionals (3520)57,300 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Professionals, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€61,714
Germany	€59,529
Ireland	€56,877
Austria	€55,374
Netherlands	€53,595
Sweden	€43,567
France	€41,515
Spain	€35,735
Italy	€33,649
Portugal	€26,072
Poland	€14,380

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.50. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (23-1023).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test