Career Girls

Overview:

Judges and hearing officers apply the law by overseeing the legal process in courts. They also conduct pretrial hearings, resolve administrative disputes, facilitate negotiations between opposing parties, and issue legal decisions.

Judges and hearing officers typically do the following:

• Research legal issues
• Read and evaluate information from documents, such as motions, claim applications, and records
• Preside over hearings and listen to and read arguments by opposing parties
• Determine if the information presented supports the charge, claim, or dispute
• Decide if the procedure is being conducted according to the rules and law
• Apply laws or precedents to reach judgments and to resolve disputes between parties
• Write opinions, decisions, and instructions regarding cases, claims, and disputes

Judges commonly preside over trials and hearings of cases regarding nearly every aspect of society, from individual traffic offenses to issues concerning the rights of large corporations. Judges listen to arguments and determine if the evidence presented deserves a trial. In criminal cases, judges may decide that people charged with crimes should be held in jail until the trial, or they may set conditions for their release. They also approve search warrants and arrest warrants.

Judges interpret the law to determine how a trial will proceed, which is particularly important when unusual circumstances arise for which standard procedures have not been established. They ensure that hearings and trials are conducted fairly and that the legal rights of all involved parties are protected.

In trials in which juries are selected to decide the case, judges instruct jurors on applicable laws and direct them to consider the facts from the evidence. For other trials, judges decide the case. A judge who determines guilt in criminal cases may impose a sentence or penalty on the guilty party. In civil cases, the judge may award relief, such as compensation for damages, to the parties who win lawsuits.

Judges use various forms of technology, such as electronic databases and software, to manage cases and to prepare for trials. In some cases, a judge may manage the court’s administrative and clerical staff.

The following are examples of types of judges and hearing officers:

Judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates preside over trials and hearings. They typically work in local, state, and federal courts.

In local and state court systems, they have a variety of titles, such as municipal court judge, county court judge, and justice of the peace. Traffic violations, misdemeanors, small-claims cases, and pretrial hearings make up the bulk of these judges’ work.

In federal and state court systems, district court judges and general trial court judges have authority over any case in their system. Appellate court judges rule on a small number of cases, by reviewing decisions of the lower courts and lawyers’ written and oral arguments.

Administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officers usually work for local, state, and federal government agencies. They decide many issues, such as whether a person is eligible for workers’ compensation benefits or whether employment discrimination occurred.

Work Environment:

Judges and hearing officers held about 44,800 jobs in 2014. All were employed by federal, state, and local government.

Judges and hearing officers do most of their work in offices and courtrooms. Their jobs can be demanding, because they must sit in the same position in the court or hearing room for long periods and give undivided attention to the process.

Some judges and hearing officers may be required to travel to different counties and courthouses throughout their state.

Most judges and hearing officers work full-time, but some may work additional hours to prepare for hearings.

Some courthouses have evening and weekend hours. In addition, judges have to be on call during nights or weekends to issue emergency orders, such as search warrants and 

Education and Training:

A law degree is required for most jobs as a local, state, or federal judge or hearing officer.

In addition to a law degree, federal administrative law judges must also pass a competitive exam from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Getting a law degree usually takes 7 years of full-time study after high school—4 years of undergraduate study, followed by 3 years of law school. Law degree programs include courses, such as constitutional law, contracts, property law, civil procedure, and legal writing. For more information on how to become a lawyer, see the profile on lawyers.

Most judges and magistrates must be appointed or elected into judge positions, a procedure that often takes political support. Many local and state judges are appointed to serve fixed renewable terms, ranging from 4 to 14 years. A few judges, such as appellate court judges, are appointed for life. Judicial nominating commissions screen candidates for judgeships in many states and for some federal judgeships. Some local and state judges are elected to a specific term, commonly 4 years, in an election process.

Most judges and hearing officers learn their skills through years of experience as practicing lawyers. Some states allow those who are not lawyers to hold limited-jurisdiction judgeships, but opportunities are better for those with law experience.

Skills to Develop:

Critical-reasoning skills: Judges, mediators, and hearing officers must apply rules of law. They cannot let their own personal assumptions interfere with the proceedings. For example, they must base their decisions on specific meanings of the law when evaluating and deciding whether a person is a threat to others and must be sent to jail.

Decision-making skills: Judges, mediators, and hearing officers must be able to weigh the facts, apply the law or rules, and make a decision relatively quickly.

Listening skills: Judges, mediators, and hearing officers must pay close attention to what is being said in order to evaluate information.

Reading comprehension: Judges, mediators, and hearing officers must be able to evaluate and distinguish the important facts from large amounts of complex information. 

Writing skills: Judges, mediators, and hearing officers write recommendations or decisions on appeals or disputes. They must be able to write their decisions clearly so that all sides understand the decision.

Job Outlook:

Employment of judges and hearing officers is projected to show little or no change from 2014 to 2024.

The number of federal and state judgeships is projected to remain steady because nearly every new position for a judge must be authorized and approved by a legislature.

However, budgetary constraints in federal, state, and local governments are expected to limit the ability of these governments to fill vacant positions or authorize new ones. Furthermore, budgetary concerns may limit the employment growth of hearing officers and administrative law judges working for local, state, and federal government agencies, despite the continued need for these workers to settle disputes.

In addition, the desire of parties to resolve disputes through mediation or arbitration, rather than litigation and trials, may adversely affect the demand for judges and hearing officers.

The prestige associated with becoming a judge will ensure continued competition for these positions. Most job openings will arise as a result of judges and hearing officers leaving the occupation because of retirement, to teach, or because their elected term is over.

Earnings:

The median annual wage for administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officers was $92,110 in May 2016. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $41,730, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $162,400.

The median annual wage for judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates was $125,880 in May 2016. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $35,250, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $183,570.