2004 Young Lawyers Compensation Survey
Catherine Choi-Pearson, Ph.D.
Shawn Pearson
Every two years, the Young Lawyers Section conducts a survey on salary compensation within the state of Nevada. The results allow attorneys to evaluate salary and working conditions in the job market and allow employers to make fair and informed offers to potential employees.
In the spring of 2002, surveys were mailed to 1,951 attorneys who were identified by the State Bar of Nevada as meeting eligibility requirements for the Young Lawyers Section. By definition, a Young Lawyer is someone who is 36 years or younger, or has been practicing law in the state of Nevada for less than five years (note that Nevada’s definition varies from the American Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division, which applies the five year criteria to an attorney’s first bar). Of the 1951 surveys distributed, 373 surveys were returned for a response rate of 19%. This year we conducted the survey entirely online and found that response rates varied greatly depending on the means of contact: 307 responded to e-mail solicitation (26%), 41 responded to fax solicitation (8%) and 20 responded to mail solicitation (8%). The participant sample included 217 males (58.2%) and 150 females (40.2%). Six responders declined to identify their gender. Approximately 84% (n = 313) of the sample was between 26 to 36 years of age (range 25 to 61 years). Only nine of the attorneys in this sample (2.4%) indicated that they worked part-time.
The majority of the respondents self-identified as Caucasian (n = 324, 86.9%), with remaining participants indicating they were of Hispanic/Latino (n = 13, 3.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (n = 9, 2.4%), Native American (n = 2, 0.5%), Multiracial (n = 5, 1.3%), or African American (n = 3, 0.8%) descent. Nine individuals (2.4%) did not respond to this question. The vast majority indicated that they were United States citizens (n=359, 96.2%) With respect to marital status, 225 of the respondents were married (60.3%), 88 were single (23.6%), 17 were divorced (4.6%), and 37 were in a committed relationship (9.9%). Six individuals did not reveal their relationship status.
Young Lawyers licensed in Nevada were surveyed regardless of whether they actually reside in the state. Of the submitted responses, over half of the attorneys practiced in Las Vegas (n =232, 62.2%). Attorneys working in Reno (n = 55, 14.7%), Carson City (n = 25, 6.7%), rural Nevada (n = 2, 0.5%), Elko (n=2, 0.5%), and Lake Tahoe (n=4, 1.1%) rounded out the in-Nevada component of the respondents. Out of state (n=32, 8.6%) and Other (n=18, 4.8%) comprised the remainder of the sample. The law schools attended varied greatly. This being the second time that the survey has been conducted since a class has graduated from the Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, it was not surprising to see a large number of Boyd graduates (n=48, 12.9%), though it is somewhat surprising that they represent the largest contingent by far, with California Western (n=21, 5.6%) trailing by a wide margin.
The average number of years licensed in the state of Nevada was 2.99 years (range 1 to 10 years). The mean number of years in practice was 4.25 years (range 1 to 34 years). The most common areas of practice cited were litigation (54.7%), personal injury (24.9%), corporate (25.7%), commercial litigation (28.2%), criminal (11%), and insurance defense (23.1%). In terms of practice settings, 280 participants (78.7%) worked in private law firms (ranging from 2 to 30+ attorneys). Fifty six attorneys (15.7%) worked for the government/state, sixteen (4.3%) were sole practitioners, and eighteen (4.8%) worked in corporations. Seventeen (4.6%) individuals did not respond to the question.
Compared with 2001’s average salary of $72,521, the average salary for all the respondents for 2003 was $74,990.26 (range $20,000 to $325,000). In general, males earned an average salary of $79,253.04 (an increase of $4,156 over 2001) compared to the average salary of 68,654.93 (a decrease of $665 over 2001) earned by females. Examining the variable of location reveals salary discrepancies between in-state and out-of-state attorneys as well as differences in Nevada regions. For example, attorneys who practice out of state are compensated an average of $94,689.20 per year. Average salaries in-state were $68,884 (a decrease of $1,882), $75,645 (an increase of $5,405), and $58,962 (an increase of $981) for Reno, Las Vegas, and Carson City, respectively. In rural areas the averages for Elko ($57,250, 2 respondents), rural Nevada ($71,000, 2 respondents), and Lake Tahoe ($67,500, 3 respondents) were also obtained – these numbers can be conservatively compared to the “all rural” average of $68,842 for 2001. Participants estimated an average 2004 salary of $82,668.58 (compared to $77,352 projected in 2002), with estimates ranging from $30,000 to $275,000).
Several other demographic variables were examined for their relationship to salary compensation. For marital status, single attorneys averaged $69,656.27 and married attorneys averaged $77,935.71 per year. Ethnic background revealed that individuals of Native American descent averaged the highest yearly salary at $82,500 compared to Caucasians ($75,147), Asian/Pacific Islanders ($77,428), African Americans ($75,000), Hispanic/Latinos ($65,541), and Multiracial individuals ($70,825). It is important to note, however, that data on average salary base by ethnicity needs to be interpreted with caution due to the low number of individuals self-identifying from ethnic backgrounds other than Caucasian. When examining practice background, individuals who work in law firms of 30+ attorneys average $87,883 per year. This is compared to average yearly salaries of attorneys in law firms of 20-29 attorneys ($79,403), 10-19 attorneys ($70,975), 2-9 attorneys ($71,875), government/state settings ($62,361), corporations ($95,764), non-profit public interest ($54,250) and sole practice ($66,000).
Survey results also indicate that salary increases with each year of additional practice.
|
Year of Practice |
Salary |
|
1 |
$64,671 |
|
2 |
$66,632 |
|
3 |
$85,562 |
|
4 |
$78,741 |
|
5 |
$81,483 |
|
6 |
$92,500 |
|
7 |
$87,703 |
|
8 |
$93,250 |
Additional demographic data is available on the State Bar’s website, www.nvbar.org.
A billable hours requirement impacted 157 of the participants in this sample (42%). The average number of hours required was 1,763 hours per year (ranging from a staggeringly low 150 hours to a mind numbing 2,800 hours per year). In reality, the average number of hours actually billed by participants was 1,851 (range 0 to 2600 hours).
Respondents were also asked if they received a salary bonus. Over half of the sample (n = 263, 70%) answered the question affirmatively. Of these respondents, 163 receive bonuses once a year (62%), 27 receive it twice a year (10%), and 27 receive bonuses three or more times a year (27%). Thirty participants (11.4%) reported that their bonus schedule was determined by their employers and twenty four participants (9%) indicated that they received bonuses based on hours that they billed. Twenty seven individuals (10%) said that their bonus schedule was determined by “other” means. Two hundred thirty participants reported the amount of their bonus received and the average during the 2003 year was $12,603 (range $20 to $350,000). While the range of the amount of the bonuses is clearly very wide, the increases in responses to this question versus the mere 55 responses received for 2001 brought the average bonus amount down approximately $15,000.
Results revealed that employers offered a range of benefits to their employees. Health insurance was available to 87% of the sample (n = 327), down from 93% in 2001. Employees were also offered dental insurance (n = 237, 64%), life insurance (n = 196, 53%), vision insurance (n =158, 42%), dependent health insurance (n = 107, 29%), and disability insurance (n = 131, 35%). The majority of employers also covered professional membership dues (n = 289, 78%) and payment of continuing legal education fees (n = 295, 79%). Over two thirds of the sample (n = 263, 71%) indicated that professional liability insurance was an additional benefit that they received.
How do employers feel about pro bono representation and participation in state bar activities? Encouragingly, almost half of the sample indicated that their employers “strongly encourages” (n = 50, 13%) or “somewhat encourages” (n = 131, 35%) pro bono representation. Eighty-five individuals (23%) reported that pro bono representation was “tolerated” while 60 participants did not know their employer’s perspective on free legal services (16%). There were twenty five attorneys (7%) who indicated that their employers did not support pro bono representation. State bar activities were “somewhat” (n = 140, 38%) to “strongly” encouraged (n = 62, 17%). Respondents indicated that 46% of employers paid for state bar activities (n = 173), but only 22% (n = 83) supported travel costs for state bar functions. When examining participation in the Young Lawyers Section, the majority of attorneys “never” (n = 207, 56%) or “infrequently” participated (n = 66, 18%) in these activities. Thirty four individuals participated with Young Lawyers once a year (9%), thirty five participated two to four times a year (9%), and eleven participated more than four times per year (3%).
What Do Young Lawyers Like About Their Employment?
In addition to the quantitative data recited above, this year’s survey contained open ended questions which asked respondents to identify what they liked most and least about their current positions. In the “like most” column, words like “people,” “experience,” “the chance to learn,” “freedom” and “flexibility” appear frequently. In the “like least” column, familiar complaints like “boring work,” “billable hours,” “pay” and “stress,” were cited frequently. To put those complaints in perspective, one young lawyer apparently serving with the Judge Advocate General Corps overseas had these complaints to offer: “Getting shot at. Rocket attacks. Tropical diseases. No breaks or weekends. Sand.”
Once again, there’s no substitute for data. Clearly, the rapid growth in young lawyers’ average salaries between 1999 and 2001 (from $63,817 to $72,521) has leveled off somewhat to today’s $74,990. The response rate for this year’s survey, though up by nearly 80 responses, is still less than twenty percent, and this may limit the validity of the data. Obviously, a higher response rate would paint a more accurate picture of legal salaries in Nevada, especially outside of Reno and Las Vegas. Despite these limitations, the survey presents a good starting point for lawyers and employers alike.
(Relevant images below)