Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between associate attorneys and law clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an associate attorney has an average salary of $110,053, which is higher than the $55,916 average annual salary of a law clerk.
The top three skills for an associate attorney include litigation, law firm and discovery responses. The most important skills for a law clerk are litigation, legal issues, and legal memos.
| Associate Attorney | Law Clerk | |
| Yearly salary | $110,053 | $55,916 |
| Hourly rate | $52.91 | $26.88 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 9,183 | 75,014 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Doctoral Degree, 57% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 46 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | - |
An associate attorney's role is to provide legal counseling to an individual or business entity, resolve legal disputes through crafting agreements and negotiating contract terms, and serving as an advisor or advocate. Most associate attorneys work at law firms or government agencies, supervised by more experienced personnel. Among the duties of an associate attorney includes conducting extensive research on every case, presenting factual evidence and statements, producing the legal and necessary documentation, and representing clients in formal settings.
Law clerks are employees in a legal firm who handle clerical tasks for the office. They handle the office's official phone lines, answering incoming calls, and making outgoing calls. They also field office correspondence, often receiving incoming mail and distributing them to their addressees. They manage office documents and ensure that they are correctly filed and labeled in their respective storage bins. Law clerks help make office life more comfortable because they make sure that the office is running well. They also manage appointments and office calendars.
Associate attorneys and law clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Associate Attorney | Law Clerk | |
| Average salary | $110,053 | $55,916 |
| Salary range | Between $70,000 And $170,000 | Between $27,000 And $114,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | Schiff Hardin | Hughes Hubbard & Reed |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Professional |
There are a few differences between an associate attorney and a law clerk in terms of educational background:
| Associate Attorney | Law Clerk | |
| Most common degree | Doctoral Degree, 57% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Law | Law |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between associate attorneys' and law clerks' demographics:
| Associate Attorney | Law Clerk | |
| Average age | 46 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 57.1% Female, 42.9% | Male, 52.5% Female, 47.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 6.3% White, 75.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 8.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 10.3% White, 53.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 13% |