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Legal investigator vs student attorney

The differences between legal investigators and student 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 investigator and a student attorney. Additionally, a student attorney has an average salary of $105,185, which is higher than the $72,914 average annual salary of a legal investigator.

The top three skills for a legal investigator include investigative reports, litigation and legal investigations. The most important skills for a student attorney are legal issues, legal memoranda, and social security.

Legal investigator vs student attorney overview

Legal InvestigatorStudent Attorney
Yearly salary$72,914$105,185
Hourly rate$35.05$50.57
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs9,58215,111
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 61%Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Average age4646
Years of experience44

Legal investigator vs student attorney salary

Legal investigators and student attorneys have different pay scales, as shown below.

Legal InvestigatorStudent Attorney
Average salary$72,914$105,185
Salary rangeBetween $45,000 And $117,000Between $69,000 And $159,000
Highest paying City--
Highest paying state--
Best paying company--
Best paying industry--

Differences between legal investigator and student attorney education

There are a few differences between a legal investigator and a student attorney in terms of educational background:

Legal InvestigatorStudent Attorney
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 61%Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Most common majorCriminal JusticeLaw
Most common collegeUniversity of RichmondStanford University

Legal investigator vs student attorney demographics

Here are the differences between legal investigators' and student attorneys' demographics:

Legal InvestigatorStudent Attorney
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 66.0% Female, 34.0%Male, 44.7% Female, 55.3%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.7% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 6.5% White, 75.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%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 Percentage10%10%

Differences between legal investigator and student attorney duties and responsibilities

Legal investigator example responsibilities.

  • Create PowerPoint presentation used to train staff on managing copyright and trademark infringement risk.
  • Prepare trial exhibits, perform criminal background checks, and serve motions and subpoenas.
  • Work as a freelance investigator/legal researcher specializing in environmental and civil litigation.
  • Provide investigative services for large loss litigation cases, precedent case research and legal discovery analysis.
  • Conduct extensive research utilizing WestLaw and LexisNexis and summarize case law used for successful litigation to recover ERISA lien.
  • Assist with probate court and estates.
  • Show more

Student attorney example responsibilities.

  • Generate an internal memorandum exploring VAWA and special immigrant juvenile cases that lead to the establishment of a new clinic program.
  • Provide direct representation to low-income clients on a range of matters including family, criminal, probate, and post-conviction review.
  • Issue subpoenas for opposing party's financial records, records for businesses own by opposing party and records of government organizations.
  • Compose subpoenas and collect discovery.
  • Represent clients before administrative and probate judges.
  • Handle trial and arbitration preparation and document review.
  • Show more

Legal investigator vs student attorney skills

Common legal investigator skills
  • Investigative Reports, 24%
  • Litigation, 18%
  • Legal Investigations, 16%
  • Conduct Interviews, 12%
  • Legal Research, 4%
  • Subpoenas, 3%
Common student attorney skills
  • Legal Issues, 8%
  • Legal Memoranda, 4%
  • Social Security, 4%
  • District Court, 4%
  • Domestic Violence, 4%
  • Probate, 3%