Judges Leave Bench for Biglaw Jobs, Higher Salaries

Back in June, our friends in New York were weighing the costs and benefits of salary increases for its state judges, who haven't seen a pay raise in twelve years.  While policymakers and legislators consider the feasibility of payroll increases in light of a new state budget that demands billions of dollars in spending cuts, some judges have had enough and are looking for jobs with salaries that reflect the significant cost of living increases in New York since 1999.   

According to a recent study, one in ten New York judges leave the bench for higher paying jobs in the private sector every year.  The highest paid judge in the New York judicial system makes just under $150,000 a year in the state's highest trial-level court - the State Supreme Court.  While that may seem like a decent salary, judges are quick to realize that some of the lawyers arguing their cases before them can take home up to ten times that amount in any given year.  Factor in the cost of living in Manhattan and skyrocketing college tuition for children, and the decision to remain in the state judiciary becomes an increasingly difficult one.   

James McGuire served as an appellate judge for six years before taking a job as a partner in a big firm in June.  While he found the work rewarding, the numbers didn't add up when he had to provide for his wife and two kids:

"I just couldn't see that I would be able to provide for [my family] financially if I stayed on the bench. Each year that we didn't get a raise, I had to continue to dip into savings and deplete those savings."[i]

Without a doubt, this should be an unpleasant wake-up call for current law students or recent graduates interested in devoting their lives to the public side of our court system.  Judges are often paid more generous salaries than prosecutors or public defenders, so it's hard to see the honorable figureheads of the American judicial system cave into financial realities and pursue more lucrative careers elsewhere.  No matter how complex or personally rewarding the work may be, public sector lawyers and judges will have to accept the fact that they are taking a substantial pay cut for serving the public good.  For those interested in pursuing a career in law, it's certainly something to consider in the years ahead. 

[i] James McGuire, "NY Judges Leave Bench for Law Firm Jobs," NPR.

Building a Better Legal Profession (BBLP) is an organization based at Stanford Law School.   BBLP is a national grassroots movement that seeks market-based workplace reforms in large private law firms. For more information, visit BBLP's Web site at www.betterlegalprofession.org.

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