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Want To Make More Money Than A Supreme Court Justice? Become A SCOTUS Clerk!

You could be earning an almost half-a-million-dollar bonus on top of your already huge six-figure salary.

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Justice Sonia Sotomayor

I didn’t know back then whether it was true whether the bonus system was in effect. Now, there is a financial inducement to clerking in the federal system. You get a very sizeable bonus at the end of your year with a judge. On the district court, it’s what, $75,000, $100,000 whatever it is? On the court of appeals, it’s at least $150,000. And I’m told it’s now $400,000 the day a law clerk leaves my office, they earn more than I do.

— Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in comments made about clerkship bonuses during the Annual David M. Rubenstein Lecture at the American Academy of Arts & Sciences this past weekend. Sotomayor says not clerking is her “one professional regret,” and she didn’t think she could “afford being a clerk.” These days, there are hefty financial benefits to clerking. If you’d like to watch her presentation, Justice Sotomayor takes the stage about one hour and 36 minutes into the recorded livestream below.

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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