Article from The Law Tuition Bible
Many readers find their way to the Law School Tuition Bubble by searching for the “number of attorneys per capita by state” and discover research I did way back in the summer of 2010. Other searches bring people to the Avery Index, which used the 2000 Census population numbers with 2007 Martindale-Hubble attorney listings. Better data are available.
This page uses the number of attorneys “active and resident” according to the “ABA’s National Lawyer Population by State” count (NLPS) and population figures by state from the U.S. Census Bureau via FRED (Puerto Rico’s is from one year earlier from the World Bank). The NLPS does not tell us the number of inactive or nonresident attorneys, but the Lawyer Statistical Report (pdf) calculates those at 4.8 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively. To give you a comparison: For the 1.3 million attorneys on the rolls in 2013, between 1970 and 2012 the ABA conferred just over 1.6 million law degrees and state bars issued nearly 2 million lawyer licenses. According to the Current Population Survey, 1.1 million attorneys were working in the United States in 2012, but the Labor Department’s Employment projections program places the figure at 759,800.
WARNING: I suspect some people, including university administrators, have used the data on this page to argue that there is an attorney shortage in one state or another.This is very, very, very wrong. There is no general shortage of lawyers anywhere in the United States. If you use these data to argue that, you are deliberately misleading your audience by failing to understand that having a law license and working as an attorney are not the same thing (doubly so for people who just have a law degree). You should be honest with your audience by understanding the entire page as presented. Furthermore, demand for legal services is dependent on the level of economic activity in a region, so it makes sense that sparsely populated states have lower lawyer densities. For more information, read the Lawyer Overproduction page.
Number of Active & Resident Lawyers Per Capita
The District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are counted as states.
NO. OF LAWYERS PER CAPITA BY STATE (2013) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
RANK | STATE | POPULATION (2013) | NO. LAWYERS ACTIVE & RESIDENT (2013) | NO. LAWYERS PER 10,000 RESIDENTS (2013) |
1. | District of Columbia | 646,449 | 51,928 | 803.28 |
2. | New York | 19,651,127 | 166,317 | 84.63 |
3. | Massachusetts | 6,692,824 | 43,008 | 64.26 |
4. | Connecticut | 3,596,080 | 21,150 | 58.81 |
5. | Illinois | 12,882,135 | 62,496 | 48.51 |
6. | New Jersey | 8,899,339 | 40,993 | 46.06 |
7. | Minnesota | 5,420,380 | 24,091 | 44.45 |
8. | California | 38,332,521 | 163,163 | 42.57 |
9. | Missouri | 6,044,171 | 24,423 | 40.41 |
10. | Louisiana | 4,625,470 | 18,528 | 40.06 |
11. | Colorado | 5,268,367 | 21,094 | 40.04 |
12. | Rhode Island | 1,051,511 | 4,173 | 39.69 |
13. | Maryland | 5,928,814 | 23,068 | 38.91 |
14. | Pennsylvania | 12,773,801 | 49,697 | 38.91 |
15. | Puerto Rico | 3,667,084 | 14,193 | 38.70 |
16. | Vermont | 626,630 | 2,300 | 36.70 |
17. | Florida | 19,552,860 | 68,464 | 35.01 |
18. | Washington | 6,971,406 | 24,032 | 34.47 |
19. | Michigan | 9,895,622 | 33,995 | 34.35 |
20. | Ohio | 11,570,808 | 38,541 | 33.31 |
21. | Alaska | 735,132 | 2,442 | 33.22 |
22. | Oregon | 3,930,065 | 12,276 | 31.24 |
23. | Texas | 26,448,193 | 82,607 | 31.23 |
24. | Delaware | 925,749 | 2,888 | 31.20 |
25. | Oklahoma | 3,850,568 | 11,970 | 31.09 |
26. | Montana | 1,015,165 | 3,046 | 30.00 |
27. | Kentucky | 4,395,295 | 13,061 | 29.72 |
28. | Virginia | 8,260,405 | 24,468 | 29.62 |
29. | Alabama | 4,833,722 | 14,303 | 29.59 |
30. | Hawaii | 1,404,054 | 4,132 | 29.43 |
31. | Maine | 1,328,302 | 3,863 | 29.08 |
32. | Georgia | 9,992,167 | 28,974 | 29.00 |
33. | Wyoming | 582,658 | 1,681 | 28.85 |
34. | Kansas | 2,893,957 | 8,199 | 28.33 |
35. | Wisconsin | 5,742,713 | 15,538 | 27.06 |
36. | Utah | 2,900,872 | 7,840 | 27.03 |
37. | Nebraska | 1,868,516 | 5,028 | 26.91 |
38. | New Hampshire | 1,323,459 | 3,507 | 26.50 |
39. | Tennessee | 6,495,978 | 17,203 | 26.48 |
40. | West Virginia | 1,854,304 | 4,901 | 26.43 |
41. | New Mexico | 2,085,287 | 5,468 | 26.22 |
42. | Nevada | 2,790,136 | 7,080 | 25.38 |
43. | Arizona | 6,626,624 | 16,208 | 24.46 |
44. | Iowa | 3,090,416 | 7,383 | 23.89 |
45. | Indiana | 6,570,902 | 15,646 | 23.81 |
46. | Mississippi | 2,991,207 | 6,955 | 23.25 |
47. | Idaho | 1,612,136 | 3,725 | 23.11 |
48. | South Dakota | 844,877 | 1,905 | 22.55 |
49. | North Carolina | 9,848,060 | 21,855 | 22.19 |
50. | North Dakota | 723,393 | 1,560 | 21.57 |
51. | Arkansas | 2,959,373 | 5,953 | 20.12 |
52. | South Carolina | 4,774,839 | 9,587 | 20.08 |
U.S.A. AVERAGE | 316,128,839 | 1,252,713 | 39.63 |
(Oregon’s lawyer count is from 2012. Alabama’s lawyer count includes all attorneys irrespective of active or resident status.
NO. LAWYERS PER 10,000 RESIDENTS BY BEA REGION | |||
---|---|---|---|
BEA REGION | POPULATION (2013) | NO. LAWYERS ACTIVE & RESIDENT (2013) | NO. LAWYERS PER 10,000 RESIDENTS (2013) |
New England | 14,618,806 | 78,001 | 53.36 |
Mideast | 48,825,279 | 334,891 | 68.59 |
Great Lakes | 46,662,180 | 166,216 | 35.62 |
Plains | 20,885,710 | 72,589 | 34.76 |
Southeast | 80,583,680 | 234,252 | 29.07 |
Southwest | 39,010,672 | 116,253 | 29.80 |
Rocky Mountains | 11,379,198 | 37,386 | 32.85 |
Far West | 54,163,314 | 213,125 | 39.35 |
There’s probably a correlation between active and resident status and bar authorities requiring high fees, CLE requirements, and mandatory pro bono work that might be worth investigating in the future.
Number of Employed Lawyers Per Capita
Next, we have the number of employed lawyers per capita by state based on data supplied by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and state government labor departments. The cumulative state total excludes Puerto Rico and the states that did not provide attorney employment information for 2012.
# | STATE/REGION | 2012 POPULATION | NO. EMPLOYED LAWYERS (2012) | NO. EMPLOYED LAWYERS PER 10,000 RESIDENTS (2012) |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | District of Columbia | 632,323 | 33,460 | 529.16 |
2 | New York | 19,570,261 | 82,220 | 42.01 |
3 | Delaware | 917,092 | 3,400 | 37.07 |
4 | Massachusetts | 6,646,144 | 22,640 | 34.06 |
5 | Vermont | 626,011 | 2,030 | 32.43 |
6 | Colorado | 5,187,582 | 15,800 | 30.46 |
7 | New Jersey | 8,864,590 | 24,150 | 27.24 |
8 | Illinois | 12,875,255 | 34,810 | 27.04 |
9 | Florida | 19,317,568 | 51,860 | 26.85 |
10 | Connecticut | 3,590,347 | 9,390 | 26.15 |
11 | Maryland | 5,884,563 | 14,800 | 25.15 |
12 | Virginia | 8,185,867 | 20,430 | 24.96 |
13 | Pennsylvania | 12,763,536 | 31,260 | 24.49 |
14 | Oklahoma | 3,814,820 | 9,260 | 24.27 |
15 | Washington | 6,897,012 | 16,290 | 23.62 |
16 | Minnesota | 5,379,139 | 12,550 | 23.33 |
17 | California | 38,041,430 | 87,400 | 22.97 |
18 | Montana | 1,005,141 | 2,270 | 22.58 |
19 | Maine | 1,329,192 | 2,930 | 22.04 |
20 | North Dakota | 699,628 | 1,540 | 22.01 |
21 | Nebraska | 1,855,525 | 4,060 | 21.88 |
22 | Missouri | 6,021,988 | 12,620 | 20.96 |
23 | Utah | 2,855,287 | 5,890 | 20.63 |
24 | Nevada | 2,758,931 | 5,640 | 20.44 |
25 | Louisiana | 4,601,893 | 9,310 | 20.23 |
26 | Georgia | 9,919,945 | 19,520 | 19.68 |
27 | Texas | 26,059,203 | 49,350 | 18.94 |
28 | New Mexico | 2,085,538 | 3,830 | 18.36 |
29 | Ohio | 11,544,225 | 21,160 | 18.33 |
30 | Wyoming | 576,412 | 1,050 | 18.22 |
31 | Arizona | 6,553,255 | 11,740 | 17.91 |
32 | Hawaii | 1,392,313 | 2,460 | 17.67 |
33 | New Hampshire | 1,320,718 | 2,280 | 17.26 |
34 | Kansas | 2,885,905 | 4,950 | 17.15 |
35 | Idaho | 1,595,728 | 2,700 | 16.92 |
36 | South Dakota | 833,354 | 1,400 | 16.80 |
37 | Wisconsin | 5,726,398 | 9,330 | 16.29 |
38 | North Carolina | 9,752,073 | 14,810 | 15.19 |
39 | South Carolina | 4,723,723 | 7,140 | 15.12 |
40 | Arkansas | 2,949,131 | 4,420 | 14.99 |
41 | Alabama | 4,822,023 | 7,040 | 14.60 |
42 | Iowa | 3,074,186 | 4,450 | 14.48 |
43 | Alaska | 731,449 | 1,020 | 13.94 |
44 | Oregon | 3,899,353 | 5,070 | 13.00 |
45 | Kentucky | 4,380,415 | 5,600 | 12.78 |
46 | Tennessee | 6,456,243 | 8,010 | 12.41 |
47 | Puerto Rico | 3,667,084 | 4,440 | 12.11 |
48 | Indiana | 6,537,334 | 7,680 | 11.75 |
49 | Mississippi | 2,984,926 | 3,220 | 10.79 |
N/A | Michigan | 9,883,360 | N/A | N/A |
N/A | Rhode Island | 1,050,292 | N/A | N/A |
N/A | West Virginia | 1,855,413 | N/A | N/A |
U.S.A. (STATES, EXCL. P.R.) | 301,124,975 | 714,240 | 23.72 | |
U.S.A. (BLS, EXCL. P.R.) | 313,914,040 | 759,800 | 24.20 | |
New England | 13,512,412 | 39,270 | 29.06 | |
Mideast | 48,632,365 | 189,290 | 38.92 | |
Great Lakes | 36,683,212 | 72,980 | 19.89 | |
Plains | 20,749,725 | 41,570 | 20.03 | |
Southeast | 78,093,807 | 151,360 | 19.38 | |
Southwest | 38,512,816 | 74,180 | 19.26 | |
Rocky Mountains | 11,220,150 | 27,710 | 24.70 | |
Far West | 53,720,488 | 117,880 | 21.94 |
‘Idle’ Attorneys
Finally, to add some value that the Lawyer Statistical Report never would have considered, the difference between lawyers on the rolls and the number of employed lawyers, which varies significantly among states and regions. This creates a statistic I call “Idle Attorneys”: licensed attorneys who are not directly employed in the profession. They may be judges, legislators, or businesspeople whose careers advanced due to their law degrees; or, they may be people who were unable to find careers as lawyers, are working in fields that don’t require law degrees, are choosing not to work, or are unemployed yet still maintaining active licenses.
The correlation coefficient between the number of law schools per capita (omitted) and idle attorneys per capita for the BEA regions is 0.60. Using data from the Law Graduate Oversupply page, the correlation between surplus graduates per capita (2013, omitted) and idle attorneys per capita is 0.86 by BEA region. I wouldn’t use this information as decisive evidence that excess law school enrollments lead to idle attorneys—there are better arguments out there—but it is an interesting relationship. Readers should note that the distribution is highly skewed, with nearly a third of idle attorneys living in New York and California.
# | STATE/REGION | NO. LAWYERS ACTIVE AND RESIDENT (2012) | NO. EMPLOYED LAWYERS (2012) | NO. IDLE LAWYERS | NO. IDLE LAWYERS PER 10,000 RESIDENTS | PERCENT IDLE |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Puerto Rico | 13,282 | 4,440 | 8,842 | 24.11 | 66.6% |
2 | Oregon | 12,276 | 5,070 | 7,206 | 18.48 | 58.7% |
3 | Alaska | 2,418 | 1,020 | 1,398 | 19.11 | 57.8% |
4 | Kentucky | 12,891 | 5,600 | 7,291 | 16.64 | 56.6% |
5 | Connecticut | 20,842 | 9,390 | 11,452 | 31.90 | 54.9% |
6 | Mississippi | 6,955 | 3,220 | 3,735 | 12.51 | 53.7% |
7 | Tennessee | 16,947 | 8,010 | 8,937 | 13.84 | 52.7% |
8 | Indiana | 15,512 | 7,680 | 7,832 | 11.98 | 50.5% |
9 | Alabama | 14,135 | 7,040 | 7,095 | 14.71 | 50.2% |
10 | New York | 163,798 | 82,220 | 81,578 | 41.68 | 49.8% |
11 | Louisiana | 18,327 | 9,310 | 9,017 | 19.59 | 49.2% |
12 | Missouri | 24,276 | 12,620 | 11,656 | 19.36 | 48.0% |
13 | Minnesota | 23,774 | 12,550 | 11,224 | 20.87 | 47.2% |
14 | Massachusetts | 42,483 | 22,640 | 19,843 | 29.86 | 46.7% |
15 | California | 159,824 | 87,400 | 72,424 | 19.04 | 45.3% |
16 | Ohio | 37,745 | 21,160 | 16,585 | 14.37 | 43.9% |
17 | Illinois | 60,069 | 34,810 | 25,259 | 19.62 | 42.0% |
18 | New Jersey | 40,997 | 24,150 | 16,847 | 19.00 | 41.1% |
19 | Hawaii | 4,107 | 2,460 | 1,647 | 11.83 | 40.1% |
20 | Kansas | 8,156 | 4,950 | 3,206 | 11.11 | 39.3% |
21 | Wisconsin | 15,364 | 9,330 | 6,034 | 10.54 | 39.3% |
22 | Iowa | 7,308 | 4,450 | 2,858 | 9.30 | 39.1% |
23 | Texas | 80,657 | 49,350 | 31,307 | 12.01 | 38.8% |
24 | Wyoming | 1,668 | 1,050 | 618 | 10.72 | 37.1% |
25 | Pennsylvania | 48,947 | 31,260 | 17,687 | 13.86 | 36.1% |
26 | District of Columbia | 51,271 | 33,460 | 17,811 | 281.68 | 34.7% |
27 | Maryland | 22,477 | 14,800 | 7,677 | 13.05 | 34.2% |
28 | New Hampshire | 3,449 | 2,280 | 1,169 | 8.85 | 33.9% |
29 | Georgia | 28,520 | 19,520 | 9,000 | 9.07 | 31.6% |
30 | Washington | 23,741 | 16,290 | 7,451 | 10.80 | 31.4% |
31 | New Mexico | 5,513 | 3,830 | 1,683 | 8.07 | 30.5% |
32 | North Carolina | 21,280 | 14,810 | 6,470 | 6.63 | 30.4% |
33 | Oklahoma | 12,978 | 9,260 | 3,718 | 9.75 | 28.6% |
34 | Idaho | 3,627 | 2,700 | 927 | 5.81 | 25.6% |
35 | Arkansas | 5,928 | 4,420 | 1,508 | 5.11 | 25.4% |
36 | South Carolina | 9,537 | 7,140 | 2,397 | 5.07 | 25.1% |
37 | South Dakota | 1,865 | 1,400 | 465 | 5.58 | 24.9% |
38 | Montana | 3,008 | 2,270 | 738 | 7.34 | 24.5% |
39 | Maine | 3,865 | 2,930 | 935 | 7.03 | 24.2% |
40 | Colorado | 20,768 | 15,800 | 4,968 | 9.58 | 23.9% |
41 | Florida | 66,556 | 51,860 | 14,696 | 7.61 | 22.1% |
42 | Utah | 7,309 | 5,890 | 1,419 | 4.97 | 19.4% |
43 | Arizona | 14,471 | 11,740 | 2,731 | 4.17 | 18.9% |
44 | Nebraska | 4,983 | 4,060 | 923 | 4.97 | 18.5% |
45 | Nevada | 6,850 | 5,640 | 1,210 | 4.39 | 17.7% |
46 | Virginia | 24,091 | 20,430 | 3,661 | 4.47 | 15.2% |
47 | Vermont | 2,270 | 2,030 | 240 | 3.83 | 10.6% |
48 | North Dakota | 1,546 | 1,540 | 6 | 0.09 | 0.4% |
49 | Delaware | 2,853 | 3,400 | -547 | -5.96 | -19.2% |
N/A | Michigan | 33,692 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
N/A | Rhode Island | 4,060 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
N/A | West Virginia | 4,854 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
U.S.A. (STATES, EXCL. P.R.) | 1,188,232 | 714,240 | 473,992 | 15.74 | 39.9% | |
U.S.A. (BLS, EXCL. P.R.) | 1,230,838 | 759,800 | 471,038 | 15.01 | 38.3% | |
New England | 72,909 | 39,270 | 33,639 | 24.89 | 46.1% | |
Mideast | 330,343 | 189,290 | 141,053 | 29.00 | 42.7% | |
Great Lakes | 128,690 | 72,980 | 55,710 | 15.19 | 43.3% | |
Plains | 71,908 | 41,570 | 30,338 | 14.62 | 42.2% | |
Southeast | 225,167 | 151,360 | 73,807 | 9.45 | 32.8% | |
Southwest | 113,619 | 74,180 | 39,439 | 10.24 | 34.7% | |
Rocky Mountains | 36,380 | 27,710 | 8,670 | 7.73 | 23.8% | |
Far West | 209,216 | 117,880 | 91,336 | 17.00 | 43.7% |