PublicPay

Law Clerk federal salary series 0904

Full-time federal employees in the Law Clerk series earned a median of $85,447 in annualized adjusted basic pay in September 2026, 22% below the all-federal median of $109,641. The middle half earned between $85,447 and $109,243.

Median pay
$85,447
full-time, September 2026
Middle 50%
$85,447–$109,243
25th–75th percentile
Employees
166
in this series, all schedules
Change in median
-15.8%
vs. September 2025
Pay distribution, full-time employees with published pay, September 2026
Law Clerk
All federal (full-time)

What shapes law clerk pay

The most common grade with published pay is GS-11 (118 employees, median $85,447). The largest employer of this series with published pay is the Department of Justice (43 employees). Federal pay depends mostly on grade and step, plus a locality adjustment for where the job is located; see the GS pay scale explainer.

OPM withheld pay for 16% of employees in this series. The figures here describe only employees with published pay; withholding is concentrated in certain agencies (see data coverage).

Law Clerk pay by grade

Grades with at least 30 full-time employees with published pay. GS grades are listed first; other pay plans follow.

Law Clerk pay by grade
Pay plan–grade Employees Median pay Middle 50%
GS-11 118 $85,447 $85,447–$88,005

middle 50% (25th–75th percentile) 10th–90th percentile median all-federal median ($109,641)

Law Clerk pay by agency

Law Clerk pay by agency
Agency Employees Median pay Middle 50%
Department of Justice 43 $85,447 $81,584–$85,447
Judicial Branch 39 $109,243 $109,243–$127,874

middle 50% (25th–75th percentile) 10th–90th percentile median all-federal median ($109,641)

Law Clerk pay by state

The 1 states with the most employees in this series and published pay.

Law Clerk pay by state
State Employees Median pay Middle 50%
District of Columbia 90 $85,447 $85,447–$109,243

middle 50% (25th–75th percentile) 10th–90th percentile median all-federal median ($109,641)

Change since September 2025

The median moved −15.8% from $101,517 in September 2025 to $85,447 in September 2026. Headcount went from 122 to 166 (+36.1%). A change in the median reflects both pay adjustments and who joined or left the workforce, so it is not the same as a pay raise.

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