By Charlotte Santry
The 2013 Canadian
Lawyer Compensation
Survey highlights the
differences between
what associates
expect to get paid
and what firms are
willing to offer.
T
he growing gap between the "unrealistic" pay expectations of associates and the salaries law firms are
prepared to offer them is highlighted in Canadian
Lawyer's 2013 Compensation Survey. Among the
survey's 553 respondents, the average salary for a first
year associate has fallen to $66,000 — a nine-per-cent
drop from last year, which had already seen a five per
cent year-on-year decline. At the same time, a slightly
greater number of firms are setting annual billable
hour targets for associates: 49 per cent of respondents, up from last year's 44 per cent. Targets range from 650 to 1,850 annual billable
hours, with an average just over 1,400.
www.CANADIAN
L a w ye r m a g . c o m
J u ly
2013
33
