The 2005 Altman Weil Law Department Compensation Benchmarking Survey of U.S. corporate law departments, published in partnership with the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC), shows that corporations are willing to compete on an economic basis with law firms to attract and retain legal talent in-house.

“This compensation data reflects the continued importance of legal services and the rising cost of those services,” notes Altman Weil principal Dan DiLucchio.  “As law departments compete with law firms for legal talent, the corporation has had to pay more to recruit lawyers”

“Increased scrutiny of corporate behavior in recent years, compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and numerous other issues underscore the importance of an effective in-house legal department,” explained Fred Krebs, president of ACC. 

Base Salaries Rise

Median salaries for senior positions in law departments increased this year, with Chief Legal Officers (CLOs) and Division General Counsel salaries rising 4.1 percent and 5.4 percent respectively.  Lawyers in more senior non-management positions also saw increases, with Senior Attorneys up 6.2 percent and Staff Attorney positions reporting an increase of 4.7 percent. Recent Graduate salaries were flat, with no reported change.

The survey reports national median salary for Chief Legal Officers in 2005 at $280,000.  The Senior Attorney position drew $129,000, while a new law school graduate earned a salary of $60,000.

Home | About the Bar | For Members | For the Public | Legal Links | Publications | Online Store
Lawyer Referral Service | Law-Related Education | NHBA•CLE | NHBA Insurance Agency | NHMCLE
Search | Calendar

New Hampshire Bar Association
2 Pillsbury Street, Suite 300, Concord NH 03301
phone: (603) 224-6942 fax: (603) 224-2910
email: NHBAinfo@nhbar.org
© NH Bar Association Disclaimer