# Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates

US SOC code 23-1023. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/23-1023

Also called: Judge, Federal judge, District court judge, Circuit judge, Magistrate judge.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **24,030** US judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates, with median pay of **$153,990** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **29,020**, in May 2015. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://www.fjc.gov/history/exhibits/snapshots-federal-judicial-history-1790-1990) of **28** from 1790, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates: Electronic case management + PACER, 1990 to 2020.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 2.8% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=23-1023&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **25%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1789
- Latest US employment: 24,030 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [4]
- Latest US median pay: $153,990 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [9]
- Outlook: +2.8% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [23]

### In other countries

The latest figure each country's statistics agency publishes for this job. Each uses its own occupation definition, survey basis and currency, so the numbers are not directly comparable with each other or with the US figures.

- **Canada** (NOC 41100)
  - Employment, 2020: 3,240. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [7]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021: number of persons with employment income in NOC 41100 Judges, Canada, reference year 2020. A recipients basis (anyone with employment income during the year), slightly broader than a point-in-time employed count. Statistics Canada Open Licence.
  - Median pay, 2020: C$298,000. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [13]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021 (Table 98-10-0586): median employment income for NOC 41100 Judges, Canada, reference year 2020, full-year full-time workers (the basis comparable to the US OEWS full-time median). Statistics Canada Open Licence.

### All 30 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1790 | 28 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Federal Judicial Center [1] |
| 1870 | 4,300 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Federal Judicial Center [1] |
| 1900 | 8,500 (estimate) | $5,000 (estimate) | Est., 1900 Census Special Reports (employment) [2]; Est., Federal Judicial Center (pay) [8] |
| 1950 | 13,500 (estimate) | $15,000 (estimate) | Est., Federal Judicial Center (employment) [1]; Est., Federal Judicial Center (pay) [8] |
| 1970 | n/a | $40,000 (estimate) | Est., Federal Judicial Center [8] |
| 1971 | 23,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., US Courts [3] |
| 2000 | n/a | $141,300 (estimate) | Est., Federal Judicial Center [8] |
| 2003 | 24,640 | $96,310 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [4] |
| 2004 | 25,500 | $93,070 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [4] |
| 2005 | 25,330 | $97,570 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [4] |
| 2006 | 25,870 | $101,690 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [4] |
| 2007 | 25,500 | $107,230 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [4] |
| 2008 | 25,470 | $110,220 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [4] |
| 2009 | 26,350 | $112,830 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [4] |
| 2010 | 25,900 | $119,270 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [4] |
| 2011 | 26,570 | $120,130 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [4] |
| 2012 | 27,220 | $115,760 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [4] |
| 2013 | 27,190 | $118,150 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [4] |
| 2014 | 28,090 | $115,140 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [4] |
| 2015 | 29,020 | $126,930 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [4] |
| 2016 | 27,210 | $125,880 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [4] |
| 2017 | 28,440 | $133,840 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [4] |
| 2018 | 28,520 | $133,920 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [4] |
| 2019 | 28,670 | $136,910 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [4] |
| 2020 | 28,550 | $141,080 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [4] |
| 2021 | 27,790 | $148,030 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [4] |
| 2022 | 28,230 | $151,030 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [4] |
| 2023 | 24,470 | $148,910 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [4] |
| 2024 | 25,580 | $156,210 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [4] |
| 2025 | 24,030 | $153,990 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [4] |

## Sources (91)

### Employment series

1. [Federal Judicial Center — Snapshots of Federal Judicial History 1790-1990 (23 Article III judges in 1790, plus circuit court arrangements)](https://www.fjc.gov/history/exhibits/snapshots-federal-judicial-history-1790-1990), Federal Judicial Center
2. [1900 Census Special Reports: Occupations at the Twelfth Census (legal occupations classification; judges counted within attorney/judge category)](https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1904/dec/occupations.html), US Census Bureau
3. [US Courts — Just the Facts: Magistrate Judges Reach the Half Century Mark (61 full-time magistrates in 1971; 449 part-time; 780% growth over 50 years)](https://www.uscourts.gov/data-news/judiciary-news/2019/02/20/just-facts-magistrate-judges-reach-half-century-mark), United States Courts / Administrative Office
4. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
5. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2006, Table 97-563-XCB2006069 (Wage and salary statistics by occupation, NOC-S 2006), income reference year 2005](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&PID=96285), Statistics Canada
6. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2016, Table 98-400-X2016356 (Occupation by employment income statistics, NOC 2016), income reference year 2015](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/98-400-X2016356), Statistics Canada
7. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Wage series

8. [Federal Judicial Center, Judicial Salaries: US District Court Judges (1900: $5,000, uniform since 1891)](https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges/judicial-salaries-us-district-court-judges), Federal Judicial Center
9. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
10. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
11. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2006, Table 97-563-XCB2006069 (Wage and salary statistics by occupation, NOC-S 2006), income reference year 2005](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&PID=96285), Statistics Canada
12. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2016, Table 98-400-X2016356 (Occupation by employment income statistics, NOC 2016), income reference year 2015](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/98-400-X2016356), Statistics Canada
13. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Tool eras

14. [Federal Judicial Center — A User Guide to the History of the Federal Judiciary Website](https://www.fjc.gov/history), Federal Judicial Center
15. [US Legal Support — The Evolution of Court Reporting](https://www.uslegalsupport.com/blog/evolution-of-court-reporting/), US Legal Support
16. [RL Resources — The Court Reporter's Best Friend: A History of the Stenograph](https://rlresources.com/2018/08/09/court-reporters-best-friend-history-stenograph/), RL Resources (NJ Court Reporters)
17. [Wikipedia — Westlaw (history: 1975 launch, 1982 federal courts contract)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westlaw), Wikipedia
18. [UNC Law Library — From Westlaw to Westlaw Advantage: How the Names Tell the Story of Westlaw's Evolution](https://library.law.unc.edu/2025/11/from-westlaw-to-westlaw-advantage-how-the-names-tell-the-story-of-westlaws-evolution/), Kathrine R. Everett Law Library, UNC
19. [PACER — About PACER: history and overview (established by the Judicial Conference in 1988, providing electronic public access to federal court records)](https://pacer.uscourts.gov/about-us), United States Courts / PACER
20. [Northwestern University — Federal judges report broad adoption of AI tools (Dec 2025 survey: 60%+ using AI; 30% for legal research)](https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2026/03/northwestern-study-finds-a-significant-number-of-federal-judges-are-already-using-ai-tools), Northwestern University
21. [Magesh et al. — Journal of Empirical Legal Studies 2025 (17-33% hallucination rates in legal AI tools)](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jels.12413), Journal of Empirical Legal Studies
22. [Ballard Spahr — Standing Orders: Courts' Nascent Governance of AI Practices (Feb 2024; documents proliferation of federal court certification requirements for AI-generated filings)](https://www.ballardspahr.com/insights/alerts-and-articles/2024/02/standing-orders-courts-nascent-governance-of-ai-practices), Ballard Spahr LLP

### Forecasts and exposure studies

23. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 23-1023 Judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates (2025: 25.3 thousand; 2035: 26.0 thousand; +2.8%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=23-1023&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
24. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 23-1023.00, human-rated β 0.25)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

25. [National Archives — Federal Judiciary Act (1789) — Milestone Document](https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/federal-judiciary-act), National Archives and Records Administration
26. [Federal Judicial Center — History of the Federal Judiciary (Judiciary Act of 1869, senior status provision)](https://www.fjc.gov/history), Federal Judicial Center
27. [Federal Judicial Center — Judicial Salaries: US District Court Judges (1891: $5,000 uniform salary established)](https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges/judicial-salaries-us-district-court-judges), Federal Judicial Center
28. [Federal Judicial Center — Landmark Legislation: Federal Magistrates Act (1968 Act creation, 1971 nationwide implementation)](https://www.fjc.gov/history/legislation/landmark-legislation-federal-magistrates-act), Federal Judicial Center
29. [US Courts — Just the Facts: Magistrate Judges Reach the Half Century Mark (1990 title change to Magistrate Judge)](https://www.uscourts.gov/data-news/judiciary-news/2019/02/20/just-facts-magistrate-judges-reach-half-century-mark), United States Courts
30. [Northwestern University — Federal judges report broad adoption of AI tools (March 2026, reporting December 2025 survey)](https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2026/03/northwestern-study-finds-a-significant-number-of-federal-judges-are-already-using-ai-tools), Northwestern University

### Predecessors & successors

31. [JRank Articles — Colonial Period: Local Courts and Magistrates (justice of the peace as community magistrate)](https://law.jrank.org/pages/11879/Colonial-Period-Local-courts-magistrates.html), JRank Articles / Law Library
32. [Federal Judicial Center — Biographical Directory of Article III Federal Judges, 1789-present (attorney background universal)](https://www.fjc.gov/history/judges), Federal Judicial Center
33. [Federal Judicial Center — Landmark Legislation: Federal Magistrates Act (Commissioners replaced by magistrates in 1968)](https://www.fjc.gov/history/legislation/landmark-legislation-federal-magistrates-act), Federal Judicial Center
34. [JAMS — About JAMS (retired judges as primary arbitrator pool)](https://www.jamsadr.com/about), JAMS (Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services)

### Present-day analysis

- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-23
- [O\*NET 30.3 — Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates (23-1023.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/23-1023.00), accessed 2026-05-23
- [NCSC: Artificial intelligence (AI) resources for courts, including the TRI/NCSC AI Policy Consortium for Law and Courts and an AI Implementers Forum for court professionals](https://www.ncsc.org/resources-courts/artificial-intelligence-ai), accessed 2026-10-07
- [Federal Judicial Center — Artificial Intelligence subject hub: guidance, training, and publications for federal courts](https://www.fjc.gov/subject/artificial-intelligence), accessed 2026-06-21
- [ABA Business Law Today (Sept 2024) — AI sanction jurisprudence and how federal courts require accuracy certification for AI-assisted filings](https://www.americanbar.org/groups/business_law/resources/business-law-today/2024-september/common-issues-arise-ai-sanction-jurisprudence/), accessed 2026-06-21
- [Florida Bar News — Florida Supreme Court amends rules to address AI use in court filings (2024)](https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-news/supreme-court-amends-rules-to-address-ai-use-in-court-filings/), accessed 2026-06-21
- [Magesh et al., Journal of Empirical Legal Studies (2025) — Hallucination-Free? Assessing the Reliability of Leading AI Legal Research Tools](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jels.12413), accessed 2026-05-23
- [ABA Journal (Mar 2026) — AI use by federal judges is broad but infrequent: 60%+ use at least one AI tool in judicial work](https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/ai-use-by-federal-judges-is-broad-but-infrequent-new-study-shows), accessed 2026-06-21
- [Thomson Reuters — CoCounsel reaches 1M users, judicial and chambers use cases (Feb 2026)](https://legaltechnology.com/cocounsel-now-available-to-one-million-professionals-says-thomson-reuters/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates (median wage $104,910; −5% decline outlook 2024-2034)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/legal/judges-and-hearing-officers.htm), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Lex Machina (LexisNexis) — Legal Analytics for judicial research and litigation intelligence](https://www.lexisnexis.com/en-us/products/lex-machina.page), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Reuters Legal — AI policies spreading across US federal courts, 30+ local rules by late 2025](https://www.reuters.com/legal/legalindustry/us-federal-judges-adopt-varying-policies-use-ai-court-filings-2024-05-01/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Harvey AI — $11B valuation, 100k+ users, judicial and chambers research use cases (Mar 2026)](https://theplanettools.ai/blog/harvey-ai-11-billion-valuation-200m-raise-vertical-ai), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Judicature — AI in the Courts: How Worried Should We Be? Accountability, explainability, and judicial oversight (2024)](https://judicature.duke.edu/articles/ai-in-the-courts-how-worried-should-we-be/), accessed 2026-06-21

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.