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Salaries Are Up And So Are The Non-Traditional Benefits

The key to finding an employer that fits your style may be in the perks.

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While salaries and bonuses drive most of the excitement for premier positions around here, benefits actually vary wildly between jobs and can make a big difference. If your firm matches your 401k contributions that can be a tremendous boon to your bottom line. If your firm’s health insurance forces you to jump through a million hoops to see a doctor, that’s going to put you in a permanent state of distress.

And employers know this, which is why we’ve seen an uptick in the quality of perks offered in the legal industry over the last several years.

Special Counsel has released its annual salary and compensation guide for employers and candidates across in-house legal departments and law firms, collecting responses from over 6000 respondents across the country. Before we go any further, let’s get the big ticket item out of the way — here are the average salaries of firm and in-house jobs based on employer size:

Small
In-house: $126,176
Firm: $119,602

Medium
In-house: $179,860
Firm: $160,964

Large
In-house: $196,358
Firm: $234,556

No real surprise there. Even though some small boutiques are paying full market salaries, generally the smaller the firm the smaller the paycheck. On the other hand, at most of these smaller places, attorneys are buying back their lives — trading top-tier pay for a more manageable lifestyle.

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In a true sign of the times, roughly 50 percent of the legal professionals polled say they’re offered flexible work arrangements. Telecommuting tools are robust these days and with the price of real estate in major markets, employers are not as squeamish about letting their people work remotely. Some firms are even designing their new offices around this reality. In-house legal departments were slightly ahead on this score, with 49 percent offering remote working opportunities, but 46 percent of firm respondents said the same thing.

Firms excel over their clients when it comes to family leave. Almost 50 percent of firms offer company paid paternity/maternity leave with only 35 percent of in-house departments offering paid leave. In addition, 13 percent of law firms offer onsite or emergency childcare to employees which sounds like an amazing benefit. If you’re looking to “parent while lawyering” get yourself to one of these firms!

Around 20 percent of in-house legal departments offer paid volunteer time, which is a nice perk and certainly encourages attorneys to fulfill their pro bono obligations. Other respondents described pet-friendly offices which sounds like an absolute nightmare for people with allergies. On-site gyms, cafeterias, and wellness benefits were reported too.

The moral of the story is don’t just judge an employer by the salary they’re offering. There’s an overlooked maze of benefits and perks that can make the difference between a superstar employer and miserable experience for you. Take the time to dig into those perks because in a lockstep industry, that’s where the customization is happening.

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HeadshotJoe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

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