The legal sector offers would-be lawyers several career paths. Each of these career choices comes with different challenges and rewards. They also come with different salaries.
Several salary ranges for different lawyer specialties include corporate, intellectual property, real estate, and personal injury. In addition to choosing a career in one of these specialties, a lawyer must decide whether to work in public interest law or private practice.
This will be a crucial choice if you study to become a lawyer. Both options allow you to make a difference in people’s lives, but you must be realistic with your salary expectations.
Public Interest Law Is About Serving Your Community
If you decide to go into public interest law, you must commit to serving your community without expecting a massive salary.
Generally speaking, public interest lawyers devote themselves to helping the underprivileged and representing people who cannot afford a private lawyer. They are also big on social justice and choose to work in non-profit organizations or public defender offices. Typical public interest cases include debt collection, lending, and environmental issues.
If you are interested in public interest law, you can also work in a legal aid society or government agency. Either way, your salary will stay on the lower end of the scale. This is mainly because of how these institutions get funding. Non-profits and government agencies have limited budgets, so they prioritize service over salary.
Moreover, organizations that depend on donations and allocations cannot predict their resources from month to month because the sources are not always reliable. This also means they cannot guarantee a steady or high salary.
Average Salaries in Public Interest Law
Your potential salary as a public interest lawyer will depend on your experience and where you ultimately choose to work. Still, even if you get a good starting salary, you will earn a lot less than your peers in private practice.
Entry-level salaries in public interest law are often as low as $74,000 per annum. Median salaries for highly experienced lawyers can be anywhere from $87,000 to $100,000 annually.
Looking Beyond Salary
If you have a strong desire to make a difference in people’s lives, being a public interest lawyer may be the better option, despite the low salary.
Working in the public interest sector means you can take on cases that directly impact individuals and communities. You will experience the deep satisfaction of securing justice and good outcomes for those who have never had a chance otherwise.
Moreover, you will enjoy a better work-life balance. A career as a public interest lawyer is demanding, but because your organization does not follow a billable hour method, your hours may be more predictable.
Even better, as a public interest lawyer, you may qualify for a loan forgiveness program. This means you can reduce or eliminate your student loan debt.
In public interest law, you will also get several opportunities to sharpen your legal skills. You will likely get a high volume of diverse cases to work on while gaining valuable courtroom experience. While you work through your caseload, you may even discover that you prefer a legal niche you want to specialize in.
What to Expect From a Private Practice
If your heart is set on working in a private practice setting, you will eventually settle in a law firm representing different companies, institutions, and individuals. Everyone you represent will have enough money to pay you for your time.
Private practice law firms bill clients hourly for their lawyers’ time, expertise, and outcomes. Keep in mind that you will experience pressure to generate billable hours. This is because your compensation is tied to your firm’s profitability.
Private Practice Salaries
Considering that you will bill your clients per hour when you work in a private practice environment, it is immediately obvious that your salary will be much higher than that of a public interest lawyer.
Top law firms often offer starting salaries equal to the top salary of a public interest lawyer. Salaries exceed $100,000 annually for entry-level lawyers.
As your experience and successful outcomes increase, your salary will increase quickly. If you manage to make senior partner at your firm, you can earn millions.
Private Practice Comes With Several Demands
It is vital to realize that if you choose a private practice, your time is not yours. While you will earn a lot more money, you will also work a lot more hours. You will need to meet client expectations while competing with your peers.
Moreover, you will be under pressure to perform, and a healthy work-life balance will be difficult to attain.
Factors That Influence Lawyer Salaries
As discussed earlier, several factors influence lawyer salaries, including the funding structure of organizations and law firms.
Corporate legal services are typically in higher demand than public interest legal services. This skewed demand allows private practice firms to charge higher fees. This automatically translates into higher salaries for lawyers who perform well and generate revenue.
Private practice lawyers typically have more than a handful of loyal clients (individuals and corporations) who will not hesitate to fork out a lot of money for legal expertise. On the other hand, public interest lawyers represent low-income individuals.
Furthermore, private practice firms reward lawyers more significantly for their experience and expertise. If you work your way up the ladder and create a proven track record of success, you can command the salary you want.
In public interest law, you will develop your skills, but you may never enjoy the same financial gain, regardless of your expertise.
Finding the Right Fit For You
Ultimately, the choice you make comes down to what your priorities and lawyer career goals are. Private practice will always be more appealing if you exclusively want financial security and a high-powered career.
If you are looking for something meaningful, public interest law will get you up close with your community and the people who need your services the most.
You could work for a non-profit with a more successful funding structure if you want the best of both worlds. Some firms also have a pro bono budget, which means you can take on public interest cases while working in the private sector.
Either way, your decision will guide your legal career over the long term.
Article and permission to publish here provided by Susan Melony. Originally written for Supply Chain Game Changer and published on April 29, 2024.
Cover image by marcinturosz from Pixabay.