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General counsel vs legal counsel

The differences between general counsels 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 general counsel and a legal counsel. Additionally, a legal counsel has an average salary of $132,867, which is higher than the $125,248 average annual salary of a general counsel.

The top three skills for a general counsel include litigation, legal issues and legal advice. The most important skills for a legal counsel are legal advice, legal issues, and litigation.

General counsel vs legal counsel overview

General CounselLegal Counsel
Yearly salary$125,248$132,867
Hourly rate$60.22$63.88
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs50,27510,337
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 45%Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Average age4646
Years of experience44

What does a general counsel do?

A general counsel, also called a chief legal officer, is the chief lawyer in the legal department of an organization. The counsel represents an enterprise for any pending legal matters. They work proactively to lessen possible problems associated with legalities and potential risks. They have to monitor practices and the people within the law firm for misconduct. They also perform dominant roles in regulation, ethics, public affairs, and legislation. It is common for them to serve as the public spokesperson of the company during the publicity of legal matters.

What does a legal counsel do?

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.

General counsel vs legal counsel salary

General counsels and legal counsels have different pay scales, as shown below.

General CounselLegal Counsel
Average salary$125,248$132,867
Salary rangeBetween $75,000 And $208,000Between $81,000 And $216,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companyMartin's Point Health CareApple
Best paying industryFinanceTechnology

Differences between general counsel and legal counsel education

There are a few differences between a general counsel and a legal counsel in terms of educational background:

General CounselLegal Counsel
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 45%Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Most common majorLawLaw
Most common collegeStanford UniversityStanford University

General counsel vs legal counsel demographics

Here are the differences between general counsels' and legal counsels' demographics:

General CounselLegal Counsel
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 61.5% Female, 38.5%Male, 54.2% Female, 45.8%
Race ratioBlack 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%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 Percentage10%10%

Differences between general counsel and legal counsel duties and responsibilities

General counsel example responsibilities.

  • Assist in liaising with insurance authorities, responding to regulatory inquiries and managing relationship with region from legal and business perspective.
  • Review subpoenas and attorney letters for compliance with HIPAA and institutional guidelines and coordinate non-party depositions as needed.
  • Prepare dozens of complex commercial transactions in connection to equity and debt securities offerings.
  • Handle regulatory, compliance, licensing, and registration matters for securities broker- dealer and register investment adviser.
  • Supervise commercial litigation, arbitration and claims, including case strategy, pleadings preparation, hearings, depositions and settlement negotiations.
  • Supervise and train unit charge with securing patient medical records, ensuring compliance with Medicare and HIPAA regulations and accreditation standards.
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Legal counsel example responsibilities.

  • Achieve statewide recognition as expert on Medicare and Medicaid.
  • Manage high-risk employee terminations from initial decision through preparation for appeals hearings and any subsequent legal action.
  • Assist in liaising with insurance authorities, responding to regulatory inquiries and managing relationship with region from legal and business perspective.
  • Conduct anti-money laundering (AML) and know your customer (KYC) due diligence on a daily basis.
  • Ensure compliance with federal securities laws, NYSE rules, and Sarbanes-Oxley requirements.
  • Draft position statements for EEO and other regulatory claims.
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General counsel vs legal counsel skills

Common general counsel skills
  • Litigation, 12%
  • Legal Issues, 8%
  • Legal Advice, 8%
  • Intellectual Property, 5%
  • Risk Management, 4%
  • Ethics, 4%
Common legal counsel skills
  • Legal Advice, 11%
  • Legal Issues, 9%
  • Litigation, 8%
  • Legal Support, 7%
  • Intellectual Property, 5%
  • Legal Risks, 4%