Will AI replace judicial law clerks?

Part of the work, not the whole job. AI could take on about 58% of the working time in a typical judicial law clerk job today. The other 42% still needs a person.

42% of the work still needs a person.

Needs a person: 42%A person checking AI: 21%AI alone: 37%

The bracket under the bar is the evidence range for the share AI could take on: 55 to 58%. One end comes from how well AI did each responsibility in real use, or a second rating where that isn't measured. The other is our figure, which also follows research across the industry.

17 responsibilities in a typical judicial law clerk job. Median pay $64,920 a year in the U.S. (BLS, May 2025).

Still needs a person

  • Confer with judges on legal questions
  • Draft briefs and legal memos AI helps
  • Draft and proofread judicial opinions AI helps
  • Attend court to record case information
  • Research case law for pending cases AI helps
  • Review filings to find the real issues AI helps

AI can do or help with

  • Research case law for pending cases AI helps
  • Draft briefs and legal memos AI helps
  • Review filings to find the real issues AI helps
  • Draft and proofread judicial opinions AI helps
  • Enter case data into court systems AI can do it
  • Verify case files are complete AI can do it

The biggest responsibilities on each side, ranked by a person's time on the left. "AI helps" means AI takes on part of the work, or most of it with a person checking what it produces, so one can show on both sides. See all 17, with the reason for each and the cost of handing them to AI.

Is this your job?

Upload your résumé to see your Human Edge: how much of this job your experience holds in the 42% that still needs a person. You also get a free plan with what to learn next. We never keep your résumé.

Check my résuméHiring? Check a job posting

Questions people ask

Will AI replace judicial law clerks?

Part of the work, not the whole job. AI could take on about 58% of the working time in a typical judicial law clerk job today. The other 42% still needs a person. That is a split of the work, not a forecast of jobs lost.

Which parts of the job can AI do?

The biggest ones AI can do or help with: research case law for pending cases, draft briefs and legal memos, review filings to find the real issues, draft and proofread judicial opinions, enter case data into court systems, verify case files are complete.

Which parts still need a person?

The biggest ones: confer with judges on legal questions, draft briefs and legal memos, draft and proofread judicial opinions, attend court to record case information, research case law for pending cases, review filings to find the real issues.

How is this measured?

The U.S. Department of Labor lists 18 responsibilities for this job (O*NET 31.0), and the split covers the 17 people in it do today. Each is scored on 4 questions: can AI do it, does it get it right, must a person sign for it, and do people need to deal with a real person. The split is weighted by how much of the job each responsibility takes up. The evidence range for the share AI could take on is 55 to 58%. One end comes from how well AI did each responsibility in real use, or a second rating where that isn't measured. The other is our figure, which also follows research across the industry. Scores version 0.7.17, updated October 28, 2026.

Responsibilities from O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor). Pay from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025. Scores are calibrated to published research and updated every month. How it works.

Related jobs

All 231 jobs, ranked · Jobs AI can't replace yet