Salary Range of Corporate Lawyers
Corporate lawyers are business law experts. They assist corporations and other business organizations with legal advisement on various aspects of corporate affairs. Corporate lawyers advise clients about taxation, mergers and acquisitions, economics, contracts and more. They defend clients and act as a liaison between organizations and other industries such as real estate, securities and financial services. Corporate attorneys earn very high wages. Salary ranges differ based on how much experience the attorney has, where he works and the financial structure of his employer.
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Average Earnings
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As a national average, corporate attorneys earn annual salaries ranging from $81,639 to $163,150 including bonuses, profit sharing and commissions according to Payscale.com. Geographic location makes a difference in the earnings of corporate attorneys. Corporate lawyers in New York, California, Illinois and Texas earn the highest salaries on average. New York corporate attorneys, for example, earn salaries ranging from $79,667 to $164,005 per year.
Years Experience
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Years of experience makes a significant difference in corporate lawyer earnings. While entry-level salaries of lawyers are generally high compared to the wages of other professionals, salaries increase dramatically with additional experience. According to Payscale.com, salaries of corporate attorneys with less than one year experience range from $59,833 to $118,669 per year. Corporate lawyers with between 10 and 19 years experience earn salaries ranging from $100,314 to $188,580.
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Employer Type
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Corporate lawyers are employed in different industries. While many are self-employed, with their own private practice, most are salaried employees. Salaried corporate attorneys work in private law firms, state and local governments, colleges and universities and other organizations. According to Payscale.com, corporate lawyers who work in private law firms earn the most, averaging between $86,967 and $158,814 per year while those working for state and local governments earn the least, averaging between $54,045 and $86,476 per year.
Considerations
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Salary ranges of corporate lawyers are based on national averages. Some lawyers earn considerably more than average while some earn considerably less. Some salaries are based on workload, while some are based on set fees regardless of how much time is put in. All salaries are negotiable. In most cases, corporate lawyer salaries are directly related to the value of the attorneys skills and the individual organization in which the attorney works.
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References
- Photo Credit young lawyer image by Alexey Stiop from Fotolia.com
