ABA Profile of the Legal Profession

The annual Profile of the Legal Profession report is a snapshot of a moment in time – a compilation of statistics and trends in 10 areas, including demographics, law schools, judges and legal technology.

• The 2023 Profile of the Profession report is live!
• Watch video of the one-hour webinar “Civil Legal Aid in America: A Challenge for Equal Justice”

2023 Profile of the Legal Profession report

OTHER KEY RESOURCES

Civil Legal Aid

• ABA: Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense
• Legal Services Corporation: LSC grantees
• Legal Services Corporation: Justice Gap Report
• National Center for Access to Justice: Justice Index
• National Legal Aid & Defenders Association
• National Association of IOLTA Programs

Demographics

• ABA: National Lawer Population Survey (2022 survey; 2023 survey pending)
• ABA: Model Diversity Survey
• ABA: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Center

• National Association for Law Placement: 2022 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms
• U.S. Census Bureau: 2022 population estimates
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: 2022 Occupational Employment Statistics

Lawyer Wages

• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
• National Association for Law Placement: 2023 Associate Salary Survey
• National Association for Law Placement: 2022 Public Service Attorney Salary Survey
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: CPI Inflation Calculator

Legal Education

• ABA: ABA Required Law School Disclosures
• ABA: Legal Education Statistics
• ABA: Class of 2022 Employment Statistics
• ABA: Bar Pass Data by Race, Ethnicity and Gender
• ABA: Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar
• ABA and AccessLex: 2021 Student Loan Debt Survey Report
• Law School Admission Council: Applicants and Admissions Statistics
• Association of American Law School: Before the JD report
• National Conference of Bar Examiners: 2022 Bar Exam Statistics
• AccessLex: Legal Education Data Deck, October 2022

Judges

• ABA: Judicial Division
• ABA: Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary
• Federal Judicial Center: Biographical Directory of Article III Federal Judges, 1789-Present
• Federal Judicial Center: Demography of Article III Judges, 1789-2020
• Brennan Center for Justice: State Supreme Court Diversity, May 2023 Update

Pro Bono

• ABA: Supporting Justice report, 2018
• ABA: Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service
• ABA: Free Legal Answers
• ABA: Federal Free Legal Answers
• Association of American Law Schools: Law Student Pro Bono Survey

Women in the Legal Profession

• ABA: Commission on Women in the Profession
• ABA: In Their Own Words, 2021 report
• ABA: Left Out and Left Behind, 2020 report
• ABA: Walking Out the Door, 2019 report
• ABA: 2022 National Lawyer Population Survey (2023 survey pending)
• ABA: Legal Education Statistics
• National Association of Women Lawyers: Annual Survey Reports
• Brennan Center for Justice: State Supreme Court Diversity, May 2023 Update
• Federal Judicial Center: Biographical Directory of Article III Federal Judges, 1789-Present
• Federal Judicial Center: Demography of Article III Judges, 1789-2020
• Mississippi College School of Law: Rosenblatt’s Deans Database

Legal Technology

• ABA: TechReport 2022
• ABA: Law Practice Division

Lawyer Well-Being

• ABA: Stress, Drink, Leave 2021 report
• ABA: Stress and Resiliency in the U.S. Judiciary, 2020

• ABA and Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation: Study on Lawyer Impairment, 2016
• ABA: Survey of Law Student Well-Being, 2016
• ABA: Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs
• Healthcare journal: “Stressed, Lonely, and Overcomitted: Predictors of Lawyer Suicide Risk,” 2023
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: “Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors Among Adults – United States, 2015-2019”

Lawyer Discipline

• ABA: Survey on Lawyer Discipline Systems
• ABA: Center for Professional Responsibility

• Download a PDF of the 2022 ABA Profile of the Legal Profession report
  
• View the report on our interactive website ABALegalProfile.com