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Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) are Federal agency employees who have been appointed under provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act to preside over formal APA hearings. They are all attorneys. Over 30 Federal agencies employ over 1100 ALJs, although 80% are employed by the Social Security Administration. ALJs make initial or recommended decisions that are subject to appeal to the agency head or the agency head's designee. Under the APA, ALJs are appointed by agencies after a special qualification procedure organized by the Office of Personnel Management. The APA also guarantees them special protections designed to protect their decisional independence. They may not be assigned duties that are inconsistent with their position as judges. They may not be supervised by agency investigators or prosecutors. They are exempted from performance ratings; their pay is set by statute and based on seniority; and they may not be disciplined or dismissed unless good cause is shown before the Merit Systems Protection Board. ALJs are to be distinguished from the many "administrative judges," "hearing officers," and other non-ALJ adjudicators used by agencies to preside over non-APA cases.
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