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Legal administrator vs general counsel

The differences between legal administrators and general counsels can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a legal administrator, becoming a general counsel takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a general counsel has an average salary of $125,248, which is higher than the $47,198 average annual salary of a legal administrator.

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

Legal administrator vs general counsel overview

Legal AdministratorGeneral Counsel
Yearly salary$47,198$125,248
Hourly rate$22.69$60.22
Growth rate14%10%
Number of jobs56,41950,275
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Average age4646
Years of experience124

What does a legal administrator do?

The job of legal administrative assistants is to provide support to lawyers and paralegals. They typically perform legal research, manage schedules, and draft legal-related documents. Other duties include interpreting laws, regulations, and rulings in legal documents, obtaining information from other agencies or organizations, and preparing management and legal reports. In addition, legal administrative assistants are responsible for updating and maintaining databases and ensuring to provide effective administrative assistance. They are also expected to schedule client meetings and court hearings.

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.

Legal administrator vs general counsel salary

Legal administrators and general counsels have different pay scales, as shown below.

Legal AdministratorGeneral Counsel
Average salary$47,198$125,248
Salary rangeBetween $33,000 And $66,000Between $75,000 And $208,000
Highest paying CityWashington, DCSan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateNew YorkCalifornia
Best paying companyRopes & GrayMartin's Point Health Care
Best paying industryGovernmentFinance

Differences between legal administrator and general counsel education

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

Legal AdministratorGeneral Counsel
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common majorBusinessLaw
Most common collegeStanford UniversityStanford University

Legal administrator vs general counsel demographics

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

Legal AdministratorGeneral Counsel
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 28.2% Female, 71.8%Male, 61.5% Female, 38.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 5.7% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%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 Percentage9%10%

Differences between legal administrator and general counsel duties and responsibilities

Legal administrator example responsibilities.

  • Prepare and distribute payroll manage daily office operations and equipment and maintain supplies for office to run effectively.
  • Provide information regarding the rules and regulations of the DMV.
  • Proofread legal applications to ensure that all information have been properly submit.
  • Prepare probate and estate documents, accounting statements, and estate tax returns.
  • Determine adequacy and propriety of surety bonds to protect the assets of the beneficiary.
  • Determine a person's eligibility to possess firearms or explosives in accordance with federal law.
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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 administrator vs general counsel skills

Common legal administrator skills
  • Veterans, 10%
  • Litigation, 10%
  • PowerPoint, 6%
  • Law Firm, 5%
  • Legal Research, 5%
  • Management System, 4%
Common general counsel skills
  • Litigation, 12%
  • Legal Issues, 8%
  • Legal Advice, 8%
  • Intellectual Property, 5%
  • Risk Management, 4%
  • Ethics, 4%