Salary Survey
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Our latest salary survey of over 1,200 legal professionals set out to explore how post-pandemic recovery has influenced the legal job market.
Around 1,200 legal professionals were surveyed, covering a broad variety of legal roles from Legal PA, to Solicitors, to General Counsel. The findings revealed in this candidate-led market, companies appear to be investing in employee retention through financial incentives. Cutbacks to salaries and bonuses reported in our previous salary survey have been restored, with 54% of respondents receiving a salary increase this year and almost half of the audience were also rewarded with a bonus.
- The 2023 TotallyLegal Salary Survey: Benchmark Your Salary
- Rising Remuneration
- Peak Payments
- Industry Incomes
- Firm Decisions
- Salary by PQE
- Additional Perks
- Mind the Gap
- TotallyLegal Salary Insights
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The 2023 TotallyLegal Salary Survey: Benchmark Your Salary
TotallyLegal; the UK’s leading specialist legal job site for lawyers and legal professionals, is turning to you, our trusted audience and partners to contribute to our 2023 salary survey.
Following a year of uncertainty and continued resilience to innumerable economic challenges, TotallyLegal strives to investigate and understand the 2023 legal employment market.
Building on findings from previous TotallyLegal audience insight surveys, we’ll determine the current trends, challenges and changes facing the legal recruitment landscape.
TotallyLegal is looking for confidential feedback from across the legal profession including General Counsel, Solicitors, Associates, Partners, Paralegals, and Legal Secretaries working both in-house and in law firms across all practice areas.
Our survey will provide you with the unique opportunity to benchmark your salary, allowing you to see if your compensation is in line with colleagues and the wider industry average.
To contribute your part to the 2023 TotallyLegal Audience Insight Report, please complete our salary survey questionnaire here.
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Rising Remuneration
Just over half of our audience received a pay rise this year, up from 34% in 2021. Legal support roles had a high chance of receiving a pay increase; 75% of legal professionals working in Human Resources jobs, 69% of those in Legal IT jobs and 63% of those working in Legal Secretary jobs reported a pay boost.
Senior level legal professionals also benefited from pay increases in 2022. Legal professionals working in Associate jobs had a 68% chance of receiving a pay rise. Similarly, 61% of those working in Partner jobs and 58% of those in Solicitor jobs received a pay increase.
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Peak Payments
The average salary for many legal jobs grew this year, with General Counsel jobs continuing to award the highest salaries in the profession, with the average General Counsel salary sitting at £114,440. The average salary for In-House Counsel jobs came second at £89,453, followed by Partner salaries paying £85,982.
The average salary for Graduate jobs increased significantly year-on-year, with a 66% increase taking salaries for Graduate legal roles up to £38,571. The average salary for legal support roles also grew, with salaries for Legal HR increasing by 28% to £48,750, salaries for Practice Manager increasing by 15% to £59,792 and salaries for Legal PAs increasing by 8% to £38,800.
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Industry Incomes
Average salary by practice area has experienced a lot of movement over the last 12 months. The average salary for Media and Entertainment law jobs has increased to £106,071, with 100% of respondents working in this practice area reporting a salary increase. Legal professionals working in Shipping law jobs have experienced a 56% increase in average salary since 2021 and the average salary for legal professionals working within Construction law increased to £62,708.
On the other hand, the average salary for Energy law jobs and Environmental law jobs decreased by 30%. The average salary for Family/matrimonial law jobs also experienced a year-on-year decline of 24%, with the average salary for Family Law now at £40,811.
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Firm Decisions
Legal jobs at Magic/ Silver Circle Law Firms are awarding the highest salaries in the profession, with legal professionals earning an average salary of £92,984 in 2022. Legal professionals working In-House can expect to earn the second highest, average salary, with our survey revealing an average salary of £75,788 for In-House legal jobs. The average salary for professionals from a US Law Firm has grown by 34% in the last 12 months to £74,405.
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Salary by PQE
The average salary for newly qualified legal jobs has grown by 31% in the last 12 months. Legal professionals with 1 to 2 years PQE can now expect a salary of £49,340, up from £37,770 in 2021.
The average salary for legal professionals with 10+ post qualified experience stands at £86,480.
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Additional Perks
This year, just under half of surveyed legal professionals received a bonus (47%), compared with 39% in 2021. The highest paying legal jobs were also the most likely to have been awarded a bonus. 70% of respondents working in In-House Counsel jobs, 67% in Document Review roles and 63% of General Counsel roles received an additional financial supplement.
The top two benefits continue to be Pension (25%) and Private Healthcare (24%). Despite huge disruption to working structures over the last couple of years, just 23% of respondents were offered remote or flexible working opportunities.
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Mind the Gap
With a pay gap of 30%, notable salary discrepancies are still present in the legal profession. On average, male respondents take home an annual salary of £73,962, compared to female respondents who take home just £55,954. The largest pay discrepancies exist in Document Review, Litigator, Legal Secretary and Human Resources roles.
But there appear to be positive steps towards narrowing this gap. In 2021, six practice areas showed wage gaps of more than 70% but in 2022, the largest pay gap was 51%. However, female legal respondents only out-earned male respondents in 7 practice areas, demonstrating there is still a long way to go to achieving gender parity in the legal profession.
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TotallyLegal Salary Survey
Do you want to discover more about the latest trends in the legal recruitment market? Or perhaps benchmark your salary against your peers? Find out more in our latest Salary Survey report.