Career
Lawyers
Advise people and argue their cases under the law.
$159,670
Median pay
+4.7%
Job growth, 2025–35
28,700
Openings a year
Doctoral or professional degree
Typical education
7–8 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Interpret laws, rulings and regulations for individuals and businesses.
- Analyze the probable outcomes of cases, using knowledge of legal precedents.
- Gather evidence to formulate defense or to initiate legal actions by such means as interviewing clients and witnesses to ascertain the facts of a case.
- Represent clients in court or before government agencies.
- Evaluate findings and develop strategies and arguments in preparation for presentation of cases.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on persuasion & leadership, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Interpret laws, rulings and regulations for individuals and businesses.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Speaking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
7–8 years of education after high school (doctoral or professional degree), for a median of $159,670 a year and 28,700 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- LawCIP 22.0101
- Advanced Legal Research/Studies, GeneralCIP 22.0201
- Programs for Foreign LawyersCIP 22.0202
- American/U.S. Law/Legal Studies/JurisprudenceCIP 22.0203
- Canadian Law/Legal Studies/JurisprudenceCIP 22.0204
- Banking, Corporate, Finance, and Securities LawCIP 22.0205
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Judicial Law Clerks$64,920 · +2.8%
- Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers$117,860 · +0.0%
- Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates$153,990 · +2.8%
- Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators$75,530 · +4.7%
- Equal Opportunity Representatives and Officers
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.