Law Clerk salary
From 744 certified H-1B filings (FY2025–FY2026). Base salary only.
- Occupation code 23-1012: Judicial Law Clerks
- Also filed as: Judicial Law Clerk
At a glance
- Mostly Level I (entry-level). 30% of Law Clerk filings are Level I, compared with 19% across all H-1B filings.
- Top filer: Terkiana. 24 filings (3% of the total), median $71,000.
- Median up 23% since FY2020. From $60,075 in FY2020 to $73,674 in FY2026 (Q1–Q3). Nominal, not adjusted for inflation.
Law Clerk H-1B salary overview
Employers filed 744 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications for Law Clerk jobs in FY2025–FY2026 (occupation code 23-1012, Judicial Law Clerks). The median base salary is $70,000, 43% below the median for all H-1B filings ($122,699), and half of the filings fall between $60,000 and $85,000. The most common wage level is Level I (entry-level), at 30% of filings. New York, NY has the most filings (274), and Terkiana is the employer that files the most (24).
Is your Law Clerk offer competitive?
Enter the base salary in your offer. We compare it with certified H-1B filings for Law Clerk jobs, nationally or in one metro area.
Enter a salary to see where it falls.
Percentiles from certified H-1B filings, base salary only. Metro areas with at least 10 filings.
Top employers for Law Clerk
Employers with the most Law Clerk filings. Bar: share of all Law Clerk filings. Figure: median base salary.
Pay by level
Entry-level · 30% of filings
Mid-level · 30% of filings
Senior · 18% of filings
Expert · 22% of filings
Show the table
By experience level
| Wage level | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| Level I · Entry | $60,000 | 225 |
| Level II · Qualified | $68,578 | 223 |
| Level III · Experienced | $73,674 | 131 |
| Level IV · Fully competent | $100,000 | 163 |
Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.
Law Clerk pay by city
Median base salary in each metro area. Rent: HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027.
Show all 13 metro areas
| Metro area | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| New York, NY | $73,680 | 274 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $70,000 | 113 |
| San Jose, CA | $80,122 | 49 |
| Washington, DC | $68,100 | 48 |
| Chicago, IL | $59,000 | 35 |
| San Francisco, CA | $94,598 | 29 |
| Atlanta, GA | $54,000 | 22 |
| Boston, MA | $64,907 | 16 |
| Dallas, TX | $56,903 | 16 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $55,328 | 15 |
| Miami, FL | $68,640 | 13 |
| Seattle, WA | $65,800 | 12 |
| Houston, TX | $56,222 | 10 |
Metro areas with at least 10 filings for this occupation.
What a Law Clerk does
Assist judges in court or by conducting research or preparing legal documents.
Typical tasks
- Prepare briefs, legal memoranda, or statements of issues involved in cases, including appropriate suggestions or recommendations.
- Research laws, court decisions, documents, opinions, briefs, or other information related to cases before the court.
- Draft or proofread judicial opinions, decisions, or citations.
- Confer with judges concerning legal questions, construction of documents, or granting of orders.
- Review complaints, petitions, motions, or pleadings that have been filed to determine issues involved or basis for relief.
- Keep abreast of changes in the law and inform judges when cases are affected by such changes.
Preparation
Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed. Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
O*NET occupation: Judicial Law Clerks (23-1012.00). This section includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
H-1B pay vs. all U.S. workers
Across all U.S. workers in this occupation (Judicial Law Clerks), the median annual wage was $64,920 in May 2025, with 13,290 people employed. The median H-1B base salary in FY2025–FY2026 is $70,000, 8% higher.
| H-1B filings | All U.S. workers (BLS, May 2025) | |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $52,046 | $46,180 |
| 25th percentile | $60,000 | $52,870 |
| Median | $70,000 | $64,920 |
| 75th percentile | $85,000 | $80,420 |
| 90th percentile | $187,000 | $113,140 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). BLS wages cover all wage and salary workers and include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are the base salary offered on certified LCAs. The two sources cover different periods. BLS reports wages of $239,200 or more as a single top value.
Salary details
Salary range
| Percentile | Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th | $52,046 |
| 25th | $60,000 |
| 50th (median) | $70,000 |
| 75th | $85,000 |
| 90th | $187,000 |
Salary by year
Median salary
Filings per year
Show as table
| Fiscal year | Median | P25 | P75 | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $60,075 | $51,510 | $72,800 | 218 |
| FY2021 | $60,000 | $50,440 | $70,000 | 181 |
| FY2022 | $65,000 | $55,453 | $81,682 | 173 |
| FY2023 | $62,950 | $52,000 | $77,250 | 242 |
| FY2024 | $61,422 | $52,000 | $75,000 | 317 |
| FY2025 | $66,560 | $55,000 | $80,025 | 356 |
| FY2026 | $73,674 | $63,986 | $87,360 | 388 |
Questions
How much does an H-1B Law Clerk make?
The median base salary in certified H-1B filings for Law Clerk jobs is $70,000 (744 filings, FY2025–FY2026). Half of the filings are between $60,000 and $85,000.
What does an entry-level Law Clerk earn on an H-1B?
Level I (entry-level) filings have a median of $60,000. Level I accounts for 30% of Law Clerk filings.
Which city pays H-1B Law Clerks the most?
Among metro areas with at least 100 filings, New York, NY has the highest median base salary for Law Clerk jobs: $73,680 (274 filings).
Which employers file the most H-1B applications for Law Clerks?
Terkiana (24), Grape Law Firm Pllc (17) and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher (16) filed the most Law Clerk LCAs in FY2025–FY2026.
Do H-1B Law Clerks earn more than other U.S. workers in the same job?
The H-1B median base salary ($70,000) is 8% higher than the median wage of all U.S. workers in this occupation ($64,920, BLS May 2025). The sources measure pay differently, so treat this as a rough comparison.