Legal
Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers
Conduct 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.
Also called: Adjudications Specialist, Adjudicator, Administrative Hearings Officer, Administrative Judge, Administrative Law Judge, Appeals Examiner
- Median pay in Greater Boston
- $113,750
- $54.69/hr
- Jobs in Greater Boston
- 250
- Massachusetts 2024–2034
- Not published
- Typical U.S. entry requirement
- Doctoral or professional degree
- plus Short-term on-the-job training; 5 years or more of related work experience
Greater Boston: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, May 2025. Growth and openings: Massachusetts statewide projection.
Pay range in Greater Boston
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $83,020 | $96,910 | $113,750 | $150,430 | $179,850 |
10% of workers earn less than the first figure and 10% earn more than the last.
What you’d do
- 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.
- Prepare written opinions and decisions.
- Conduct hearings to review and decide claims regarding issues, such as social program eligibility, environmental protection, or enforcement of health and safety regulations.
- Rule on exceptions, motions, and admissibility of evidence.
- Research and analyze laws, regulations, policies, and precedent decisions to prepare for hearings and to determine conclusions.
- Determine existence and amount of liability according to current laws, administrative and judicial precedents, and available evidence.
AI and this job
AI exposure: how much of this job’s work AI tools can do or help with, based on national research. It is not a forecast of job loss.
Higher exposure82 of 100
The index averages three national research measures, each shown as a percentile of all jobs:
- AIOE 95
- Language-model AIOE 96
- GPTs-are-GPTs 56
Observed AI use today: Substantial (Anthropic Economic Index)
AI exposure is higher for this job, and observed AI use is substantial. AI tools can help with researching laws and precedents and with drafting written decisions. Running a fair hearing, ruling on motions and evidence, and making the final decision are tasks AI tools do not take over.
Likely to change
- Researching regulations and precedent decisions
- Drafting written opinions and decisions
Still relies on people
- Running hearings fairly in person
- Ruling on evidence and making decisions
Written with AI from the data on this page. Check with a career coach before making a decision.
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Training near Boston
College and school programs in the Boston metro area that lead to this job, with 2023-24 completions (IPEDS).
0 programs near Boston (plus 7 graduate)
No programs below a master’s degree near Boston map to this job. Tick the box above to see graduate programs.
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