Survey shows in-house counsel have best average salary

Survey shows in-house counsel have best average salary

Lawyers employed as in-house counsel in the private sector have the highest average remuneration in the first 10 years of practice.

This is one of the findings of the New Zealand Law Society/Momentum Legal Salary Survey 2011. The survey was carried out in September and October and over 1,100 lawyers participated – about 10 percent of all New Zealand lawyers.

While most lawyers work for law firms or as barristers, 20 percent are employed in the public or private sectors as in-house counsel. The Law Society/Momentum survey found that the average starting salary for a private sector in-house counsel was $55,000, compared with $48,000 for large law firms, $45,000 for in-house counsel working in the public sector and $39,100 for all other law firms.

Private sector in-house counsel with five years’ experience reported an average salary of $102,700. This was well ahead of lawyers of comparable experience working in large law firms ($82,400), other law firms ($67,200) and public sector in-house lawyers ($71,000).

The survey information shows that a wide range of salaries are paid to lawyers who have been in practice for the same length of time. Variations are caused by factors such as area of practice, previous experience in other industries and location.

Information on regional salary variations showed that lawyers with five years’ experience working for law firms in Auckland received an average salary of $71,300, those in Christchurch received $59,200 and Wellington lawyers received an average of $73,300. Lawyers with the same amount of experience who worked for North Island law firms outside Auckland or Wellington had an average salary of $58,200, while lawyers in other South Island law firms averaged $59,700 per annum.

As well as receiving the best annual salaries, private sector in-house lawyers also appeared to receive more employment benefits. While 31.3% of private sector lawyers received health insurance only 9.3% of lawyers working for law firms did, and a relatively low 5.5% of in-house lawyers working in the public sector. Mobile phones were provided to 77.6% of private sector in-house lawyers, 29.6% of lawyers working for law firms and 29.4% of public sector in-house lawyers.

The survey provides information on salaries paid to lawyers and does not include details of earnings by law firm partners or directors or barristers. It was carried out by the Law Society and legal recruitment firm Momentum. The results were analysed by an independent analyst in consultation with Momentum.

Law Society statistics show that just under 36% of New Zealand lawyers are employed by a law firm. A further 20% are employed as in-house counsel and the remainder work as principals (31%) or barristers (13%). To practice as a principal, a lawyer must have completed at least three years in full-time legal practice and have passed a specialised training course.

ENDS

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