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District associate judge vs district attorney

The differences between district associate judges and district attorneys can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a district associate judge, becoming a district attorney takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a district attorney has an average salary of $72,965, which is higher than the $57,740 average annual salary of a district associate judge.

The top three skills for a district associate judge include jury trials, legal issues and legal research. The most important skills for a district attorney are pre-trial conferences, legal research, and law enforcement agencies.

District associate judge vs district attorney overview

District Associate JudgeDistrict Attorney
Yearly salary$57,740$72,965
Hourly rate$27.76$35.08
Growth rate-1%10%
Number of jobs7,65813,378
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age4646
Years of experience104

District associate judge vs district attorney salary

District associate judges and district attorneys have different pay scales, as shown below.

District Associate JudgeDistrict Attorney
Average salary$57,740$72,965
Salary rangeBetween $36,000 And $90,000Between $49,000 And $107,000
Highest paying City-San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state-California
Best paying company-Ventura County Community Foundation
Best paying industry-Professional

Differences between district associate judge and district attorney education

There are a few differences between a district associate judge and a district attorney in terms of educational background:

District Associate JudgeDistrict Attorney
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common majorLawLaw
Most common collegeStanford UniversityUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

District associate judge vs district attorney demographics

Here are the differences between district associate judges' and district attorneys' demographics:

District Associate JudgeDistrict Attorney
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 41.8% Female, 58.2%Male, 45.6% Female, 54.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.7% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 6.5% White, 75.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 5.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 6.3% White, 76.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between district associate judge and district attorney duties and responsibilities

District associate judge example responsibilities.

  • Manage, and update all scheduling of events, meetings, and appointments for mediation and arbitration for family law cases.
  • Perform extensive research and prepare legal memoranda on domestic relations and probate issues.
  • Perform clerical work by cross-referencing voters' names with their identification.

District attorney example responsibilities.

  • Manage, train and mentore newly hire ADA's in courtroom management and trial advocacy.
  • Maintain legal files and filing/tracking systems on all court cases, appeals, invoices and billings.
  • Research, analyze and write response to an order to show cause in appeals proceeding.
  • Represent county officials in arbitration proceedings and employment litigation matters.
  • Prosecute misdemeanor caseload in criminal court through various stages of litigation up until trial
  • Calculate restitution, issue subpoenas, and contact victims regarding upcoming trials and other court determinations.
  • Show more

District associate judge vs district attorney skills

Common district associate judge skills
  • Jury Trials, 27%
  • Legal Issues, 17%
  • Legal Research, 17%
  • District Court, 10%
  • Summary Judgment, 10%
  • Subpoenas, 10%
Common district attorney skills
  • Pre-Trial Conferences, 10%
  • Legal Research, 10%
  • Law Enforcement Agencies, 8%
  • Subpoenas, 5%
  • Criminal Cases, 4%
  • Felony Cases, 4%