PublicPay

Legal Assistance federal salary series 0986

Full-time federal employees in the Legal Assistance series earned a median of $68,742 in annualized adjusted basic pay in September 2026, 37% below the all-federal median of $109,641. The middle half earned between $62,204 and $75,108.

Median pay
$68,742
full-time, September 2026
Middle 50%
$62,204–$75,108
25th–75th percentile
Employees
3,212
in this series, all schedules
Change in median
+3.5%
vs. September 2025
Pay distribution, full-time employees with published pay, September 2026
Legal Assistance
All federal (full-time)

What shapes legal assistance pay

The most common grade with published pay is GS-8 (1,828 employees, median $68,919). The largest employer of this series with published pay is the Social Security Administration (1,417 employees). Among states with at least 30 full-time employees with published pay, the median is highest in District of Columbia ($80,988) and lowest in Oklahoma ($59,607), a gap that partly reflects locality pay differences. 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 31% of employees in this series. The figures here describe only employees with published pay; withholding is concentrated in certain agencies (see data coverage).

Legal Assistance pay by grade

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

Legal Assistance pay by grade
Pay plan–grade Employees Median pay Middle 50%
GS-6 220 $53,335 $51,892–$61,248
GS-7 824 $62,235 $58,514–$68,256
GS-8 1,828 $68,919 $64,019–$75,369
GS-9 82 $84,751 $80,041–$89,460
GS-10 54 $95,913 $90,269–$101,097
GL-8 38 $78,556 $75,068–$88,398

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

Legal Assistance pay by agency

Legal Assistance pay by agency
Agency Employees Median pay Middle 50%
Social Security Administration 1,417 $68,919 $62,954–$75,656
Department of Justice 877 $68,327 $62,794–$76,474
Department of the Treasury 156 $62,050 $56,715–$69,284
Department of Health and Human Services 133 $68,942 $66,129–$73,833
Small Business Administration 52 $64,000 $60,343–$67,658
Department of Veterans Affairs 41 $66,126 $61,557–$70,445

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

Legal Assistance pay by state

The 10 states with the most employees in this series and published pay.

Legal Assistance pay by state
State Employees Median pay Middle 50%
District of Columbia 310 $80,988 $70,333–$83,119
Texas 198 $67,658 $60,483–$72,900
California 188 $76,004 $69,491–$84,474
New York 106 $72,305 $68,049–$79,023
Florida 103 $65,599 $59,607–$70,781
Ohio 90 $66,129 $61,469–$70,018
Maryland 81 $72,464 $66,071–$80,988
Pennsylvania 76 $68,919 $63,332–$73,891
Georgia 72 $65,003 $61,064–$70,814
Michigan 70 $67,802 $63,694–$72,644

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

Compare legal assistance pay across all states and agencies →

Change since September 2025

The median moved +3.5% from $66,398 in September 2025 to $68,742 in September 2026. Headcount went from 3,885 to 3,212 (−17.3%). 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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