Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2005

23-1011 Lawyers

Represent clients in criminal and civil litigation and other legal proceedings, draw up legal documents, and manage or advise clients on legal transactions. May specialize in a single area or may practice broadly in many areas of law.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
529,190 0.9 % $53.13 $110,520 0.9 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $23.65 $32.47 $47.56 (5) (5)
Annual Wage (2) $49,180 $67,540 $98,930 (5) (5)

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage
Legal services 355,860 $55.92 $116,310
Local government (OES designation) 48,010 $38.86 $80,840
State government (OES designation) 32,960 $35.56 $73,970
Federal government (OES designation) 24,210 $53.95 $112,210
Management of companies and enterprises 11,920 $62.22 $129,410

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage
Sound recording industries (8) $78.73 $163,760
Lessors of real estate 550 $73.04 $151,920
Commercial equip. merchant wholesalers 380 $72.92 $151,670
Machinery and equipment rental and leasing 50 $72.31 $150,400
Communications equipment manufacturing 130 $72.05 $149,870

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest published employment concentrations and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all States with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment
District of Columbia 26,930 $64.23 $133,600 4.406%
New York 63,030 $58.85 $122,410 0.756%
Delaware 2,210 $57.89 $120,410 0.529%
New Jersey 20,520 $54.10 $112,530 0.524%
Illinois 28,710 $59.56 $123,890 0.498%

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment
District of Columbia 26,930 $64.23 $133,600 4.406%
California 60,350 $61.25 $127,390 0.410%
Illinois 28,710 $59.56 $123,890 0.498%
New York 63,030 $58.85 $122,410 0.756%
Massachusetts 14,130 $58.72 $122,150 0.449%

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest published employment concentrations and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all Metropolitan areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 34,110 $63.26 $131,590 1.528%
Tallahassee, FL 1,830 $44.70 $92,970 1.117%
New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 48,740 $62.51 $130,030 0.991%
San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA Metropolitan Division 8,810 $64.24 $133,630 0.926%
Trenton-Ewing, NJ 1,970 $48.33 $100,520 0.893%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 3,970 $73.85 $153,610 0.458%
Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA 70 $67.44 $140,270 0.108%
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA 250 $66.92 $139,200 0.275%
Longview, TX 160 $66.50 $138,330 0.186%
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 20,150 $64.38 $133,910 0.502%

About May 2005 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files (XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(5) This wage is equal to or greater than $70.00 per hour or $145,600 per year.

(8) Estimate not released.

Other OES estimates and related information:

May 2005 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2005 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2005 Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2005 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download May 2005 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: May 24, 2006