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Legal counsel vs legal compliance officer

The differences between legal counsels and legal compliance officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a legal counsel has an average salary of $132,867, which is higher than the $91,936 average annual salary of a legal compliance officer.

The top three skills for a legal counsel include legal advice, legal issues and litigation. The most important skills for a legal compliance officer are risk management, litigation, and legal compliance.

Legal counsel vs legal compliance officer overview

Legal CounselLegal Compliance Officer
Yearly salary$132,867$91,936
Hourly rate$63.88$44.20
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs10,33778,480
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 43%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age4646
Years of experience4-

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.

What does a legal compliance officer do?

The main duty of a Legal Compliance Officer is to ensure that a company is managed legally and ethically. They must guarantee that businesses are conducted in full compliance with all national and international laws.

Legal counsel vs legal compliance officer salary

Legal counsels and legal compliance officers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Legal CounselLegal Compliance Officer
Average salary$132,867$91,936
Salary rangeBetween $81,000 And $216,000Between $52,000 And $161,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CAClifton, NJ
Highest paying stateCaliforniaNew Jersey
Best paying companyAppleCITGO Petroleum
Best paying industryTechnologyManufacturing

Differences between legal counsel and legal compliance officer education

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

Legal CounselLegal Compliance Officer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 43%Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common majorLawLaw
Most common collegeStanford UniversityStanford University

Legal counsel vs legal compliance officer demographics

Here are the differences between legal counsels' and legal compliance officers' demographics:

Legal CounselLegal Compliance Officer
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 54.2% Female, 45.8%Male, 51.8% Female, 48.2%
Race ratioBlack 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%Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 8.2% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage10%12%

Differences between legal counsel and legal compliance officer duties and responsibilities

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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Legal compliance officer example responsibilities.

  • Manage outside counsel in litigation matters and coordinate internal requirements in connection with litigation.
  • Assist in liaising with insurance authorities, responding to regulatory inquiries and managing relationship with region from legal and business perspective.
  • Review and respond to subpoenas.
  • Provide ethics training and counsel to mission employees.
  • Act in a professional manner with integrity, according to the legal code of ethics of Puerto Rico.
  • Direct the ship's legal activity, including delivery of subpoenas relate to both judicial and non-judicial proceedings.
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Legal counsel vs legal compliance officer skills

Common legal counsel skills
  • Legal Advice, 11%
  • Legal Issues, 9%
  • Litigation, 8%
  • Legal Support, 7%
  • Intellectual Property, 5%
  • Legal Risks, 4%
Common legal compliance officer skills
  • Risk Management, 8%
  • Litigation, 7%
  • Legal Compliance, 5%
  • AML, 5%
  • Legal Issues, 4%
  • Legal Research, 4%