Post job

Tax attorney vs staff attorney

The differences between tax attorneys and staff 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 tax attorney and a staff attorney. Additionally, a staff attorney has an average salary of $110,028, which is higher than the $85,681 average annual salary of a tax attorney.

The top three skills for a tax attorney include litigation, law firm and real estate. The most important skills for a staff attorney are litigation, legal services, and juris.

Tax attorney vs staff attorney overview

Tax AttorneyStaff Attorney
Yearly salary$85,681$110,028
Hourly rate$41.19$52.90
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs33,76075,402
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeDoctoral Degree, 42%Doctoral Degree, 56%
Average age4646
Years of experience44

What does a tax attorney do?

A tax attorney specializes in assisting clients in understanding tax laws. Their responsibilities typically revolve around conducting extensive research, meeting with clients to conduct initial assessments and interviews, understanding their needs, and helping them make business decisions by providing legal taxation advice. A tax attorney may also help clients to find ways to minimize their tax deductions. Furthermore, aside from working with individuals, a tax attorney may also work for companies as part of their legal team.

What does a staff attorney do?

Staff Attorneys are legal employees who work for a variety of organizations, often as full-time employees. They use their legal expertise to help deal with day-to-day legal issues with which their organization needs regular assistance.

Tax attorney vs staff attorney salary

Tax attorneys and staff attorneys have different pay scales, as shown below.

Tax AttorneyStaff Attorney
Average salary$85,681$110,028
Salary rangeBetween $50,000 And $146,000Between $69,000 And $173,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateNew YorkCalifornia
Best paying companyAkin Gump Strauss Hauer & FeldNelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough
Best paying industry-Professional

Differences between tax attorney and staff attorney education

There are a few differences between a tax attorney and a staff attorney in terms of educational background:

Tax AttorneyStaff Attorney
Most common degreeDoctoral Degree, 42%Doctoral Degree, 56%
Most common majorLawLaw
Most common collegeUniversity of Southern CaliforniaStanford University

Tax attorney vs staff attorney demographics

Here are the differences between tax attorneys' and staff attorneys' demographics:

Tax AttorneyStaff Attorney
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 62.7% Female, 37.3%Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 6.4% White, 75.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 5.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 6.3% White, 75.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between tax attorney and staff attorney duties and responsibilities

Tax attorney example responsibilities.

  • Manage the death administration department with approximately thirty-five plus estates through trust administration, Medicaid estate recovery or probate.
  • Review IRS propose regulations, advisory letters and technical advice memorandums for tax litigation.
  • Probate practice - estates and protect individuals.
  • Participate in legal document review and compliance for large complex civil litigation matters.
  • Represent individual and institutional clients in all aspects of commercial and residential real estate acquisition, financing and leasing and foreclosure.
  • Handle all aspects of discovery including preparing interrogatories, document requests, taking and defending depositions and responding to discovery requests.

Staff 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 statewide training for attorneys and advocates on education law and also responsible for major impact education litigation and appeals.
  • Create and conduct workshops on e-discovery, privilege, FMLA, ADA, and FLSA
  • Conduct internal FLSA (wage and hour) compliance and re-classification audits for pre-complaint resolution.
  • General practice attorney handling primarily bankruptcy, domestic relations and criminal cases, preparation of wills and trusts and probate.
  • Draft wills, powers of attorney, probate estate administration filings, divorce filings, caregiver contracts, and property deeds.
  • Show more

Tax attorney vs staff attorney skills

Common tax attorney skills
  • Litigation, 13%
  • Law Firm, 12%
  • Real Estate, 8%
  • Taxation, 5%
  • International Tax, 4%
  • IRS, 4%
Common staff attorney skills
  • Litigation, 17%
  • Legal Services, 8%
  • Juris, 7%
  • Legal Advice, 6%
  • Appeals, 4%
  • Administrative Agencies, 4%