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The differences between corporate attorneys and legal counsels can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a corporate attorney and a legal counsel. Additionally, a legal counsel has an average salary of $132,867, which is higher than the $115,653 average annual salary of a corporate attorney.
The top three skills for a corporate attorney include law firm, litigation and real estate. The most important skills for a legal counsel are legal advice, legal issues, and litigation.
| Corporate Attorney | Legal Counsel | |
| Yearly salary | $115,653 | $132,867 |
| Hourly rate | $55.60 | $63.88 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 20,893 | 10,337 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Doctoral Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 43% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A corporate attorney is a corporate lawyer who acts as an agent representing a corporation's legal matters. Corporate attorneys represent the business transactions and operations and help their clients prevent expensive litigation. They advise business enterprises on their legal obligations, responsibilities, and rights. It is part of their job to recommend clients on business structures and provide an evaluation of their ventures. The lawyers are expected to develop strong communication skills, negotiation skills, attention to detail, and analytical skills.
A Legal Counsel supervises the legal aspects of a business. They give accurate and timely counsel to executives on a variety of legal topics, such as labor law, partnerships, or international ventures.
Corporate attorneys and legal counsels have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Corporate Attorney | Legal Counsel | |
| Average salary | $115,653 | $132,867 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $198,000 | Between $81,000 And $216,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | California |
| Best paying company | Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton | Apple |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Technology |
There are a few differences between a corporate attorney and a legal counsel in terms of educational background:
| Corporate Attorney | Legal Counsel | |
| Most common degree | Doctoral Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 43% |
| Most common major | Law | Law |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between corporate attorneys' and legal counsels' demographics:
| Corporate Attorney | Legal Counsel | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 57.9% Female, 42.1% | Male, 54.2% Female, 45.8% |
| Race ratio | Black 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, 7.9% Asian, 6.5% White, 75.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |