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The differences between lawyers and assistant 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 lawyer and an assistant counsel. Additionally, a lawyer has an average salary of $115,808, which is higher than the $61,229 average annual salary of an assistant counsel.
The top three skills for a lawyer include litigation, law firm and legal issues. The most important skills for an assistant counsel are litigation, legal issues, and legal advice.
| Lawyer | Assistant Counsel | |
| Yearly salary | $115,808 | $61,229 |
| Hourly rate | $55.68 | $29.44 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 2,897 | 8,574 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A lawyer is a legal practitioner who specializes in understanding and interpreting laws and other legal matters. Their responsibilities revolve around providing legal counseling and advice, representing clients in different kinds of court proceedings, conducting research, collecting evidence, and coordinating with various experts. A lawyer must also manage and oversee the performance of assistants, paralegals, and other team members. Furthermore, there are instances when a lawyer must draft or manage documents such as contracts, trusts, deeds, and wills, assisting clients as needed.
Assistant counsels are legal professionals who research and analyze various laws so they can apply them to the different legal issues that arose in a corporation. These counsels must develop an agency-wide client privacy policy and manage responses to all matters involving subpoenas and warrants. They advise other departments for legal claims related to the right of privacy and publicity as well as defamation. Assistant counsels are also required to act as labor attorneys for employees facing internal discrimination suits while dealing with FMLA, ERISA, and HIPAA issues.
Lawyers and assistant counsels have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lawyer | Assistant Counsel | |
| Average salary | $115,808 | $61,229 |
| Salary range | Between $64,000 And $208,000 | Between $36,000 And $103,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | New York | New York |
| Best paying company | Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough | Baltimore City Public Schools |
| Best paying industry | - | Government |
There are a few differences between a lawyer and an assistant counsel in terms of educational background:
| Lawyer | Assistant Counsel | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Law | Law |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Duke University |
Here are the differences between lawyers' and assistant counsels' demographics:
| Lawyer | Assistant Counsel | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 48.5% Female, 51.5% | Male, 42.3% Female, 57.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 6.3% White, 76.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 5.7% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 6.5% White, 75.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |