Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers
Also called: Administrative Hearings Officer, Administrative Judge, Administrative Law Judge, Hearings OfficerConduct hearings to recommend or make decisions on claims concerning government programs or other government-related matters. Determine liability, sanctions, or penalties, or recommend the acceptance or rejection of claims or settlements.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 9 of its 14 tasks, and jobs are projected to hold steady to 2035. In the most exposed occupations, the squeeze shows up first among early-career workers. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 4.3 hires for every 10 job openings in government, which employs about 100% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.4.3 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $134,810 | $112,400 to $207,480 | 70 |
| Arizona | $123,240 | $100,430 to $125,630 | 300 |
| Arkansas | $63,660 | $50,670 to $83,700 | 340 |
| Colorado | $121,410 | $91,180 to $165,420 | 220 |
| Connecticut | $95,310 | $78,520 to $122,870 | 300 |
| Delaware | $56,830 | $50,680 to $88,670 | 70 |
| District of Columbia | $181,060 | $137,560 to $207,480 | 300 |
| Florida | $115,920 | $96,550 to $149,430 | 570 |
| Georgia | $67,990 | $56,810 to $131,680 | 490 |
| Hawaii | $106,480 | $89,810 to $121,390 | 50 |
| Idaho | $65,050 | $65,050 to $65,050 | 110 |
| Illinois | $104,990 | $72,860 to $133,270 | 550 |
| Indiana | $145,290 | $117,000 to $207,480 | 70 |
| Iowa | $123,500 | $104,630 to $136,810 | 80 |
| Kansas | $126,570 | $118,680 to $136,990 | 40 |
| Louisiana | $126,440 | $88,610 to $207,480 | 140 |
| Maine | $75,960 | $65,210 to $105,370 | 120 |
| Maryland | $133,460 | $83,630 to $175,720 | 430 |
| Massachusetts | $113,750 | $96,910 to $159,830 | 270 |
| Michigan | $127,420 | $102,150 to $144,660 | 390 |
| Minnesota | $126,360 | $97,860 to $139,780 | 120 |
| Mississippi | $66,310 | $50,590 to $133,470 | 110 |
| Missouri | $129,670 | $90,190 to $207,480 | 160 |
| Montana | $83,910 | $65,910 to $108,390 | 90 |
| Nebraska | $117,060 | $112,400 to $133,470 | 30 |
| Nevada | $87,240 | $74,710 to $128,920 | 170 |
| New Jersey | $128,320 | $105,930 to $161,430 | 330 |
| New Mexico | $80,800 | $63,590 to $131,770 | 140 |
| New York | $123,170 | $101,190 to $132,480 | 1,400 |
| North Carolina | $129,960 | $79,830 to $131,660 | 260 |
| Ohio | $79,000 | $69,800 to $121,040 | 690 |
| Oklahoma | $122,930 | $90,480 to $153,570 | 90 |
| Oregon | $89,220 | $77,320 to $130,890 | 480 |
| Pennsylvania | $98,010 | $77,200 to $130,640 | 800 |
| Puerto Rico | $88,530 | $63,710 to $133,200 | 40 |
| South Carolina | $94,880 | $62,830 to $129,960 | 130 |
| Tennessee | $107,740 | $58,190 to $144,680 | 380 |
| Texas | $100,400 | $66,420 to $129,960 | 1,300 |
| Utah | $103,380 | $73,920 to $130,000 | 190 |
| Washington | $122,390 | $108,240 to $142,130 | 330 |
| West Virginia | $78,870 | $56,630 to $115,920 | 90 |
| Wisconsin | $132,250 | $121,220 to $179,030 | 60 |
Nationally: $117,860. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 9 of its 14 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI alone | Prepare written opinions and decisions. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Monitor and direct the activities of trials and hearings to ensure that they are conducted fairly and that courts administer justice while safeguarding the legal rights of all involved parties. | Not published |
| Not much | Conduct hearings to review and decide claims regarding issues, such as social program eligibility, environmental protection, or enforcement of health and safety regulations. | Not published |
| Not much | Rule on exceptions, motions, and admissibility of evidence. | Not published |
| AI + software | Research and analyze laws, regulations, policies, and precedent decisions to prepare for hearings and to determine conclusions. | 0.02% |
| Not much | Determine existence and amount of liability according to current laws, administrative and judicial precedents, and available evidence. | Not published |
See all 14 tasks
| Not much | Issue subpoenas and administer oaths in preparation for formal hearings. | Not published |
| AI + software | Explain to claimants how they can appeal rulings that go against them. | under 0.01% |
| AI + software | Review and evaluate data on documents, such as claim applications, birth or death certificates, or physician or employer records. | Not published |
| AI + software | Schedule hearings. | Not published |
| AI + software | Confer with individuals or organizations involved in cases to obtain relevant information. | Not published |
| AI + software | Authorize payment of valid claims and determine method of payment. | Not published |
| AI + software | Recommend the acceptance or rejection of claims or compromise settlements according to laws, regulations, policies, and precedent decisions. | under 0.01% |
| AI + software | Conduct studies of appeals procedures in field agencies to ensure adherence to legal requirements and to facilitate determination of cases. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 4 of the 14 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 14 tasks fall under 11 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #48 Research laws, precedents, or other legal data
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consult legal materials or public records | |||
| Make legal decisions | |||
| Advise others on legal or regulatory matters | |||
| Direct legal activities | |||
| Research laws, precedents, or other legal data | |||
| Investigate criminal or legal matters | |||
| Interview people to obtain information | |||
| Prepare legal or regulatory documents |
Show all 11 activities
| Perform court-related or other legal administrative activities | |||
| Record information about legal matters | |||
| Authorize business activities or transactions |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- A document or report53%
- An analysis or summary15%
- An explanation or answer10%
- Advice or a recommendation5%
- An email or message4%
How they worked with Claude
64% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officers specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 3,359 moves out
- 1 Postsecondary Teachers, All Other Very high +2.0% 14%
- 2 Lawyers Very high +4.7% 12%
- 3 Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products Very high -0.9% 8%
- 4 Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators Very high +4.7% 4%
- 5 Real Estate Brokers Very high +0.8% 4%
Where people moved in from
of 6,038 moves in
- 1 Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products Very high -0.9% 12%
- 2 Lawyers Very high +4.7% 7%
- 3 Postsecondary Teachers, All Other Very high +2.0% 6%
- 4 First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers Very high +0.1% 5%
- 5 Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators Very high +4.7% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 11% some college
- 11% associate's
- 20% bachelor's
- 1% master's
- 14% professional doctorate
- 37% research doctorate
- 5% post-doctoral training
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 25 people answered.
1 program: Law.
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
BLS publishes no credential figures for this occupation.
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeship Finder ↗ DOL lists 1 registered apprenticeship in this occupation (MEDICAID DISABILITY CLAIMS ADJUDICATOR). Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers” there.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS · Brynjolfsson, Chandar and Chen, Stanford (Aug 2026)
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/23-1021.00