Closing Date: 4th March, 2026
Description:
The Opportunity:OAH is currently looking to fill multiple temporary Entry and Line Administrative Law Judge positions for multiple caseloads within multiple divisions. These positions may be eligible for a hybrid telework schedule, depending on caseload-specific operational needs. Some caseloads require periodic in-person hearings, while Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Work Zone Speed Camera (WZSC) caseloads are full-time telework.
Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) are critical to the successful fulfillment of the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) mission. Line ALJs contribute by independently managing an assigned caseload; conducting thorough pre-hearing preparation; presiding over hearings that are fair in both substance and appearance; and issuing well-reasoned, timely decisions that meet established agency timeliness standards.
These positions will preside over hearings for one or more of the following caseloads.
Social and Health Services
- Division of Child Support (DCS) - DCS is a program within the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). An ALJ holds a hearing to establish child support or modify an existing administrative child support order. These are typically telephonic hearings with minimal travel required. A Claims Officer/Attorney represents DCS. The non-custodial or custodial parent files a request for hearing that DCS forwards to OAH. OAH issues an initial order in Adress Disclosure cases, and a final order in all other DCS matters. All orders are due within 21 days of the close of record.
- Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) - DCYF is a cabinet-level agency focused on the well-being of children and supporting families. ALJs hold hearings on licensing and issues affecting children (i.e. foster care, daycare, childcare assistance, child protective services, etc). The ALJ will issue an initial order except in vendor overpayments and juvenile cases where the order is final. DCYF is represented by an Assistant Attorney General and appellants are often represented by counsel. Typically, orders are due within 60 days from the close of record; however, adoption support orders and vendor overpayment orders are due 16 days from the close of record; background check and childcare assistance orders are due within 55 days from the close of record; and in a juvenile parole revocation cases, the ALJ must rule orally on the record and issue a written decision within 48 hours. These hearings are typically held by phone or video but parties may request an in-person hearing so some travel is required.
- Health Care Authority (HCA) - HCA is a state agency with overall responsibility for providing medical coverage and services. HCA or its designee determines eligibility for health care coverage, eligibility for medical services, long-term care, and in-home care services, which are funded, in part, through Medicaid. An ALJ holds hearings to determine an appellant's eligibility for health care coverage, medical services, financial and functional eligibility for long-term care, in-home care services, participation rates for long-term care, and the amount of in-home care hours. HCA is represented by an HCA Legal Services Advisor or an administrative hearing specialist through the Department of Social and Health Services or other contracting agency, while appellants are self-represented or represented by a family member most often. Hearings may be telephonic, by video conference call, or in-person and are typically 60 minutes to three hours long. Some travel may be involved. HCA orders are initial decisions and are expected to be issued within 18, 30, or 60 days of the close of record or OAH's receipt of the request for hearing, depending on the program.
- Licensing (LIC) - Licensing is a program within the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). ALJs hold a prehearing conference and hearing regarding vulnerable individuals in adult family homes and/or residential homes with issues relating to abuse and neglect by the individual provider or the facility. The alleged individual and/or facility files the request for appeal with OAH. The Department is represented by a Legal Benefits Attorney/Adviser and Appellants are often represented by counsel. In most programs, an initial order is issued within 60 days of the close of record; however, resident and client protection program initial orders are due within 120 days of the request for hearing. A final order is issued in an assisted living facility license case within 60 days of the close of record. These hearings are typically telephonic or by video, but parties may request an in-person hearing so some travel is required.
- Public Assistance (PA) - The PA caseload is administered by the Economic Services Administration (ESA) of the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). Nearly one out of every four Washington residents turns to the DSHS ESA for assistance with cash, food, disability determination, transition to employment, and other services known as “benefits” programs. ALJs hold hearings to make determinations including, but not limited to: general eligibility, overpayments, and the correctness of departmental actions such as reduction, suspension, or termination of benefits. In PA cases, the department is represented by administrative hearings specialists. Hearings are scheduled for 60 minutes or more depending on the case type, involvement of interpreter services, and the complexity of the subject matter. There are a wide variety of PA programs; thus, PA decisions can be either initial or final orders (depending on the applicable regulations). ALJs are required to issue PA decisions as soon as possible but no later than 16, 30, or 60 days of the close of record, unless an earlier decision is required by regulation.
Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI)
The OSPI caseload includes a number of case types, including special education, student transfer, teacher certification, and food program. The bulk of the work is the special education cases. These cases have significant prehearing work, including discovery and dispositive motions. Hearings may be by video or in person and typically last from two days to more than two weeks. In person hearings take place throughout the state and may require overnight travel. Parties are often represented by attorneys and may call expert witnesses. The hearings are similar to civil trials. Cases often involve multiple issues requiring an ALJ to make many findings of fact, and address numerous legal issues. ALJs may conduct settlement conferences. For student transfer cases, in contrast, there are typically only one prehearing conference, the hearings are by phone, and they rarely last more than two hours. Teacher certification and food program cases may be by video or in person and typically last a few days. All OSPI orders are final.
Unemployment Insurance (UI)
The UI caseload includes hearings on all initial appeals from UI related decisions made by the Employment Security Department (ESD). Appeals may be filed by either a claimant or former employer and are filed through the ESD. ESD transmits those appeals to OAH on a daily basis. The professional staff then schedule hearings, mail Notices of Hearing to the parties, and generally manage the case pre-and-post hearing. ALJs hear the cases (almost exclusively via teleconference) and then write and issue appropriate orders. In the normal course of business ALJs have five business days to produce an order, however in order to meet Department of Labor (DOL) standards, ALJs may be required to produce orders more quickly in cases where a DOL deadline will arrive in less than five business days. Completed orders are then distributed to the relevant parties by the professional staff.
Work Zone Speed Camera (WZSC)
The WZSC caseload is a subset of the Regulatory caseload and consists of appeals from Notices of Infraction (NOI) issued by the Washington State Patrol (WSP). The NOIs are issued as a result of drivers traveling in excess of the posted speed limit in active highway work zones. The appeals are handled in two different manners, dependent upon the nature of the appeal. Petitioners' requests for payment plans, a reduction in the penalty due to mitigating circumstances, and declarations of nonresponsibility are handled by brief adjudicative proceedings (BAP). BAPs are document review only process, with the option for the ALJ to solicit oral testimony. Petitioners' challenges to the merits of the infraction, such as, but not limited to, there were no workers or signage present, or the device calibration was incorrect are handled by formal adjudicative proceedings (FAP) in a telephone group docket setting. WSP and the Petitioners present their case before the ALJ at the hearing. ALJs are required to issue their orders within 15 days of the close of record.
About the Agency:
The 1981 Legislature created the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) to offer Washingtonians an independent, fair, and neutral forum to hold administrative hearings on disputed matters referred by state and local government agencies. Operating out of field offices in Olympia, Tacoma, and Spokane Valley there are currently 230 employees, including 120 administrative law judges who preside over administrative hearings involving unemployment insurance benefits, child support, food assistance, medical benefits, business and professional licensing, and more.
OAH conducts hearings for more than 40 agencies and 160 p
