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.
Most important skills
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Writing
- Speaking
- Complex Problem Solving
- Active Learning
Key knowledge
- Law and Government
- English Language
- Administration and Management
- Psychology
- Customer and Personal Service
- Public Safety and Security
- Computers and Electronics
- Therapy and Counseling
What the work involves
- Instruct juries on applicable laws, direct juries to deduce the facts from the evidence presented, and hear their verdicts.
- Sentence defendants in criminal cases, on conviction by jury, according to applicable government statutes.
- 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.
- Read documents on pleadings and motions to ascertain facts and issues.
- Interpret and enforce rules of procedure or establish new rules in situations where there are no procedures already established by law.
- Monitor proceedings to ensure that all applicable rules and procedures are followed.
- Advise attorneys, juries, litigants, and court personnel regarding conduct, issues, and proceedings.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Enterprising, Conventional, Social.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Doctoral Degree (66.5% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 8 years, up to and including 10 years (31.2%)
- On-the-job training
- None or short demonstration (36.1%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 5: Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | High | Higher on contact with others than 75% of occupations compared | 78% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Very high | Higher on dealing with the public than 95% of occupations compared | 79% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Teamwork | Very high | Higher on teamwork than 90% of occupations compared | 80% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very high | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 99% of occupations compared | 100% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | Very high | Higher on time pressure than 97% of occupations compared | 74% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | Very high | Higher on conflict situations than 99% of occupations compared | 78% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Very high | Higher on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 97% of occupations compared | 46% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day” |
| Consequence of error | High | Higher on consequence of error than 77% of occupations compared | 35% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: very high
- Conflict situations: very high
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: very high
- Consequence of error: high
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 0.23%
- Contact with others about half the time: 10.37%
- Contact with others most of the time: 11.01%
- Constant contact with others: 78.39%
n = 20, Incumbent 08/2020
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 0.23%
- Important: 10.58%
- Very important: 9.84%
- Extremely important: 79.35%
n = 20, Incumbent 08/2020
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 0.26%
- Important: 4.34%
- Very important: 15.23%
- Extremely important: 80.17%
n = 20, Incumbent 08/2020
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 0%
- Limited freedom: 0.26%
- Some freedom: 0.21%
- A lot of freedom: 99.53%
n = 20, Incumbent 08/2020
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 0.26%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 0.23%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 25.41%
- Every day: 74.1%
n = 20, Incumbent 08/2020
Conflict situations
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 0%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 10.85%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 10.75%
- Every day: 78.4%
n = 20, Incumbent 08/2020
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 0.23%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 0%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 10.63%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 46.33%
- Every day: 42.81%
n = 20, Incumbent 08/2020
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 18.52%
- Fairly serious: 0.23%
- Serious: 14.5%
- Very serious: 31.67%
- Extremely serious: 35.09%
n = 20, Incumbent 08/2020
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O*NET-SOC 23-1023.00 · SOC 23-1023 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8