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Immigration attorney vs litigation attorney

The differences between immigration attorneys and litigation attorneys can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an immigration attorney and a litigation attorney. Additionally, a litigation attorney has an average salary of $109,027, which is higher than the $80,187 average annual salary of an immigration attorney.

The top three skills for an immigration attorney include immigration law, business immigration and USCIS. The most important skills for a litigation attorney are litigation, law firm, and legal research.

Immigration attorney vs litigation attorney overview

Immigration AttorneyLitigation Attorney
Yearly salary$80,187$109,027
Hourly rate$38.55$52.42
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs7,7036,918
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeDoctoral Degree, 47%Doctoral Degree, 53%
Average age4646
Years of experience44

What does an immigration attorney do?

Dealing with immigration requirements can be a daunting task. An immigration attorney helps those who are struggling with these requirements. Functioning in this role means that they serve in an advisory capacity to foreign citizens and immigrants who are required to work with the country's immigration authorities. They are the go-to guy for immigrants in matters such as Visa applications, naturalization, employment, and deportation.

What does a litigation attorney do?

A Litigation Attorney manages all phases of the litigation process from investigation and pleading to trial, settlement, and appeal. They also question witnesses, victims, and others involved in cases.

Immigration attorney vs litigation attorney salary

Immigration attorneys and litigation attorneys have different pay scales, as shown below.

Immigration AttorneyLitigation Attorney
Average salary$80,187$109,027
Salary rangeBetween $48,000 And $132,000Between $69,000 And $172,000
Highest paying CityBoston, MASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateMassachusettsCalifornia
Best paying companySeyfarth ShawPerkins Coie
Best paying industryTechnologyProfessional

Differences between immigration attorney and litigation attorney education

There are a few differences between an immigration attorney and a litigation attorney in terms of educational background:

Immigration AttorneyLitigation Attorney
Most common degreeDoctoral Degree, 47%Doctoral Degree, 53%
Most common majorLawLaw
Most common collegeStanford UniversityStanford University

Immigration attorney vs litigation attorney demographics

Here are the differences between immigration attorneys' and litigation attorneys' demographics:

Immigration AttorneyLitigation Attorney
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 39.5% Female, 60.5%Male, 56.8% Female, 43.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 6.3% White, 76.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 5.5% 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 immigration attorney and litigation attorney duties and responsibilities

Immigration attorney example responsibilities.

  • Achieve a high success rate for full caseload, including after submission of complex RFE responses.
  • Manage highly demanding and detail-orient immigration litigation process as both a leader and member of legal team
  • Track LCA and maintain DOL public access files.
  • Prepare immigrant employment-base petitions under preference categories EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3.
  • Draft motions, waivers, applications, requests for evidence, and appeals to USCIS, EOIR and BIA.
  • Represent clients in employment and family-base petitions, including: H-1B, asylum, adjustment of status, and citizenship applications.
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Litigation attorney example responsibilities.

  • Supervise and manage plaintiff's personal injury practice.
  • Develop litigation strategies including discovery, deposition, arbitration, and jury trial.
  • Draft internal memos, subpoenas and various discovery documents.
  • Direct and determine all aspects of plaintiff litigation and resolution strategy.
  • Review documents for FINRA arbitration concerning poaching of traders between inter-dealer brokers.
  • Respond to investigative subpoenas from U.S. government regulatory agencies requesting production of relevant client and third party material.
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Immigration attorney vs litigation attorney skills

Common immigration attorney skills
  • Immigration Law, 14%
  • Business Immigration, 8%
  • USCIS, 8%
  • Waiver, 7%
  • Legal Research, 6%
  • Litigation, 5%
Common litigation attorney skills
  • Litigation, 30%
  • Law Firm, 14%
  • Legal Research, 6%
  • Civil Litigation, 4%
  • Commercial Litigation, 3%
  • Insurance Defense, 3%