Also called: Plaintiff's Attorney, Injury Attorney
Represents people hurt in accidents or by unsafe products and wins them money for their injuries.
Personal injury lawyers usually work on contingency: they get paid only if they win, often a third of the settlement. A day might include meeting a client injured in a truck crash, hiring an accident expert, and negotiating with an insurance company. One big verdict can pay for years of work.
Extremely variable: many earn modest incomes, a few top trial lawyers earn millions from big verdicts.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Professional degree (MD, JD, DVM…), about 7 years after high school. Bachelor's in any subject, then a 3-year Juris Doctor (JD) and passing the state bar exam.
Ways in: 4-year college, Professional school. Training cost: Over $150k.
Majors to look at: Political Science, History, English, Philosophy, Economics.
Growing about average (about 4% over 10 years). BLS projection for all lawyers (2024-34).
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI drafts demand letters and values claims from records, cutting staff work; winning client trust and trying cases stay human.
Classes: AP English Language, Speech and debate, Biology, Psychology.
Official data: O*NET occupation 23-1011.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.