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Legal counsel vs senior attorney

The differences between legal counsels and senior attorneys can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a legal counsel and a senior attorney. Additionally, a legal counsel has an average salary of $132,867, which is higher than the $111,002 average annual salary of a senior attorney.

The top three skills for a legal counsel include legal advice, legal issues and litigation. The most important skills for a senior attorney are litigation, law firm, and legal advice.

Legal counsel vs senior attorney overview

Legal CounselSenior Attorney
Yearly salary$132,867$111,002
Hourly rate$63.88$53.37
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs10,33710,445
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 43%Doctoral Degree, 53%
Average age4646
Years of experience44

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 senior attorney do?

A Senior Attorney supervises all activities of junior attorneys and deals with all complex legal transactions. They identify legal issues and offer businesses and their customers optimum solutions, as well as ensure that businesses respond appropriately to any legislative changes.

Legal counsel vs senior attorney salary

Legal counsels and senior attorneys have different pay scales, as shown below.

Legal CounselSenior Attorney
Average salary$132,867$111,002
Salary rangeBetween $81,000 And $216,000Between $67,000 And $183,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CAWashington, DC
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companyAppleClifford Chance
Best paying industryTechnologyProfessional

Differences between legal counsel and senior attorney education

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

Legal CounselSenior Attorney
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 43%Doctoral Degree, 53%
Most common majorLawLaw
Most common collegeStanford UniversityStanford University

Legal counsel vs senior attorney demographics

Here are the differences between legal counsels' and senior attorneys' demographics:

Legal CounselSenior Attorney
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 54.2% Female, 45.8%Male, 60.1% Female, 39.9%
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, 5.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 6.2% White, 76.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between legal counsel and senior attorney 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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Senior attorney example responsibilities.

  • Manage and respond to corporate subpoenas including drafting appropriate objections and preparing witnesses for deposition.
  • Manage the death administration department with approximately thirty-five plus estates through trust administration, Medicaid estate recovery or probate.
  • Draft charging instruments, pleadings, subpoenas, consent agreements, orders and other documents pertaining to administrative enforcement litigation proceedings.
  • Experience litigation attorney, with emphasis on management of civil and matrimonial litigation, from initial interview through trial or settlement.
  • Communicate with client and insurance carriers concerning the progress of the litigation and provide recommendations regarding settlement or other claim resolution.
  • Represent individual and institutional clients in all aspects of commercial and residential real estate acquisition, financing and leasing and foreclosure.
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Legal counsel vs senior attorney skills

Common legal counsel skills
  • Legal Advice, 11%
  • Legal Issues, 9%
  • Litigation, 8%
  • Legal Support, 7%
  • Intellectual Property, 5%
  • Legal Risks, 4%
Common senior attorney skills
  • Litigation, 14%
  • Law Firm, 8%
  • Legal Advice, 8%
  • Juris, 7%
  • Legal Research, 7%
  • Legal Support, 4%