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Contract attorney vs student attorney

The differences between contract attorneys and student attorneys can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a contract attorney and a student attorney. Additionally, a student attorney has an average salary of $105,185, which is higher than the $97,474 average annual salary of a contract attorney.

The top three skills for a contract attorney include litigation, e-discovery and legal research. The most important skills for a student attorney are legal issues, legal memoranda, and social security.

Contract attorney vs student attorney overview

Contract AttorneyStudent Attorney
Yearly salary$97,474$105,185
Hourly rate$46.86$50.57
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs13,59215,111
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeDoctoral Degree, 57%Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Average age4646
Years of experience44

Contract attorney vs student attorney salary

Contract attorneys and student attorneys have different pay scales, as shown below.

Contract AttorneyStudent Attorney
Average salary$97,474$105,185
Salary rangeBetween $60,000 And $158,000Between $69,000 And $159,000
Highest paying CitySan Ramon, CA-
Highest paying stateCalifornia-
Best paying companyPerkins Coie-
Best paying industry--

Differences between contract attorney and student attorney education

There are a few differences between a contract attorney and a student attorney in terms of educational background:

Contract AttorneyStudent Attorney
Most common degreeDoctoral Degree, 57%Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Most common majorLawLaw
Most common collegeStanford UniversityStanford University

Contract attorney vs student attorney demographics

Here are the differences between contract attorneys' and student attorneys' demographics:

Contract AttorneyStudent Attorney
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 50.9% Female, 49.1%Male, 44.7% Female, 55.3%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 6.3% White, 75.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 6.4% White, 75.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between contract attorney and student attorney duties and responsibilities

Contract attorney example responsibilities.

  • Conduct first-level document review, QC review, and privilege review for complex residential mortgage-backed securities litigation.
  • Experience in e-discovery document review teams assessing responsiveness in second requests, pharmaceutical litigation/product liability cases and patent infringement suits.
  • Consult with law firms regarding deposition and hearing preparations and provide other litigation support services for various banking and pharmaceutical antitrust matters
  • Remove confidential personal information and HIPAA.
  • Prepare deposition files, write pleadings, subpoenas and participate in other discovery-relate projects.
  • Privilege log line writing and privilege QC in large-scale anti-trust litigation/investigation of several private equity firms.
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Student attorney example responsibilities.

  • Generate an internal memorandum exploring VAWA and special immigrant juvenile cases that lead to the establishment of a new clinic program.
  • Provide direct representation to low-income clients on a range of matters including family, criminal, probate, and post-conviction review.
  • Issue subpoenas for opposing party's financial records, records for businesses own by opposing party and records of government organizations.
  • Compose subpoenas and collect discovery.
  • Represent clients before administrative and probate judges.
  • Handle trial and arbitration preparation and document review.
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Contract attorney vs student attorney skills

Common contract attorney skills
  • Litigation, 23%
  • E-Discovery, 11%
  • Legal Research, 7%
  • Legal Issues, 4%
  • Real Estate, 3%
  • Intellectual Property, 3%
Common student attorney skills
  • Legal Issues, 8%
  • Legal Memoranda, 4%
  • Social Security, 4%
  • District Court, 4%
  • Domestic Violence, 4%
  • Probate, 3%