How To Become An Associate Counsel: What It Is and Career Path

What is an associate counsel and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Hanna Royce

An associate counsel provides legal advice to an organization and generally ensures that the company is operating in accordance with the existing legal requirements. He/she works together with the members of the legal team to protect the company's legal affairs. Some of their duties include preparation of legal documents, reviewing contracts, interpretation of state and federal laws, and policy formulation.

An associate counsel works under the supervision of senior members of the team. They can decide to specialize in a specific field of law, such as intellectual property, real estate law, corporate law, criminal law, or family law. A successful associate counsel should have extensive legal knowledge, analytical skills, negotiation skills, and communication skills.

Associate counsels usually work 40 hours a week Monday to Friday from 9 to 5. Sometimes they are required to work extra hours when finalizing urgent requests.

What general advice would you give to an associate counsel?

Hanna Royce

Assistant Dean of Career Services, University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law

Graduates should keep their network active. This includes them taking the time to re-engage with the members of their network on a regular basis and continuing to make new contacts. They should make it a priority to stay in touch with their classmates and professors. They might be looking for a new position in the future, and their legal network can help them locate opportunities through the hidden job market.

Many graduates are securing remote positions. To be successful in a remote environment, employees need to make the extra effort to communicate and stay connected with colleagues. Even when employees are telecommuting, they should dress as if they are going into the office. This can help them with productivity and illustrate their professionalism when meeting with colleagues or clients.

ScoreAssociate CounselUS Average

Salary

8.6

Avg. Salary $139,766

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

10.0

Growth rate 10%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.31%

Asian 6.32%

Black or African American 5.48%

Hispanic or Latino 7.71%

Unknown 4.37%

White 75.82%

Gender

female 51.30%

male 48.70%

Age - 45

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 45

Stress level

10.0

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

10.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an associate counsel

Explore associate counsel education requirements

Most common associate counsel degrees

Bachelor's

45.5 %

Doctorate

33.6 %

Master's

12.3 %

Start to develop specific associate counsel skills

Skills	Percentages
Legal Issues	11.02%
Litigation	9.09%
Legal Advice	8.36%
Intellectual Property	7.40%
Substance Abuse	5.89%

Complete relevant associate counsel training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-2 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New associate counsels learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an associate counsel based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real associate counsel resumes.

Research associate counsel duties and responsibilities

First-Chair arbitration hearings and achieve favorable awards.
Develop and implement an agency-wide client privacy policy and manage agency response to all matters involving subpoenas and warrants.
Assist in liaising with insurance authorities, responding to regulatory inquiries and managing relationship with region from legal and business perspective.
Update policies and standard operating procedures to conform to HIPAA, EEOC, FDA, and state pharmacy board guidelines.

Prepare your associate counsel resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your associate counsel resume.

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