Canadian Lawyer

July 2012

The most widely read magazine for Canadian lawyers

Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/71860

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 36 of 47

GEOGRAPHY AND METHODOLOGY Eighty-four per cent of respondents identified themselves as regional law firms or companies and the remainder as national. Sixty-six per cent employ one to nine lawyers, 23 per cent employ 10 to 49 lawyers, and the remainder have upwards of 50 lawyers. Approximately half (48 per cent) of respondents are based in Ontario, 24 per cent in British Columbia, 17 per cent in Alberta, 13 per cent in Quebec, eight per cent in Nova Scotia, and the remainder are located in the other provinces and territories. There were not enough responses in each region to further break the numbers down. The compensation figures represent base 8% salary before bonuses or perks. As these can often be quite substantial, they were covered in other questions. For respondents who provided salary ranges instead of solid numbers, those numbers were averaged out and included in the survey's calculations. 66% of respondents employ one to nine lawyers average legal spend budgets in 2012, 30 per cent were under $500,000 with the same percentage falling in the range of $500,000 to $1 million. The remaining 40 per cent were upwards of $1 million. When it comes to in-house counsel' salaries, there seems to be a bit more wiggle room with the majority of respon- dents reporting that salaries will increase in 2013. Corporate legal departments also generally offer greater benefits and perks than law firm respondents, although that may be a reflection more of the size of an organization than of anything else as smaller law firms don't tend to offer many perks or extensive benefits. More than 95 per cent of law department respondents reported their company provides benefits and 65 per cent offer perks such as profes- sional development and health club mem- berships. A fair number, 70 per cent, also have a pension plan for lawyers. You're also more likely to receive a s bonus working in-house than at a smaller law firm: 62 per cent paid bonuses to law- yers in 2011, with 53 per cent basing it on a percentage of salary. See the accompanying charts for com- pensation data for in-house lawyers. 17% 18% 13% NATIONAL (SAMPLE SIZE: 129) 9% LAW FIRM PARTNER INCOME ASSOCIATE COMPENSATION NATIONAL (SAMPLE SIZE: 112) Year of call Median 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 Lowest Highest and earlier $72,500 $37,000 $108,000 $77,000 $38,000 $116,000 $83,000 $42,000 $124,000 $91,000 $44,000 $138,000 $110,500 $46,000 $175,000 $110,000 $50,000 $170,000 $130,000 $50,000 $210,000 $250,000 $50,000 $450,000 SENIOR IN-HOUSE COUNSEL COMPENSATION Median NATIONAL (SAMPLE SIZE: 44) Lowest Highest General counsel at director level NATIONAL (SAMPLE SIZE: 44) Year of call Median 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 $468,242 $72,500 $863,984 General counsel at executive level $647,500 $95,000 $1,200,000 IN-HOUSE COUNSEL AVERAGE COMPENSATION Lowest Highest and earlier $77,500 $55,000 $100,000 $93,750 $60,000 $127,500 $117,500 $85,000 $150,000 $100,000 $60,000 $140,000 $112,500 $75,000 $150,000 $125,000 $90,000 $160,000 $120,000 $75,000 $165,000 $132,500 $85,000 $180,000 $150,000 $100,000 $200,000 $167,500 $60,000 $275,000 www.CANADIAN Lawyermag.com JULY 2012 37 7% 6% 4% 3% 15% $ $ $ UP TO $50,000 $401,000-$450,000 $450,000 + $51,000-$100,000 $101,000-$150,000 $151,000-$200,000 $201,000-$250,000 $251,000-$300,000 $301,000-$350,000 $351,000-$400,000 $351,000-$400,000 $351,000-$400,000

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of Canadian Lawyer - July 2012