How Much Do Australian Lawyers Make?
Lawyers sit among the top 10 best paid salary earners in Australia according to recently released reports from the Australian Taxation Office, with a noticeable disparity between males and females in the legal profession.
On average, lawyers earn more than - for instance - CEOs and Managing Directors, although they sit behind and the medical profession.
On average, lawyers earn a salary of $184,958 per year, based on lawyers across all sectors of the profession with the overall survey involved in almost 14 million people.
The median salary for all occupations was $48,360.
Sydney Ranks Highest
Beacon Legal published their ‘Private Practice Salary and Market Report 2020’ earlier this year and noted that Sydney was home to the highest paying lawyer jobs in Australia.
The average lawyer salary in Melbourne was the second highest in the country followed by Brisbane in third place.
Top Earning
But which lawyers earn the most? A recruitment survey show the following as the top-earning
1. Generalist, in-house counsel - almost $129,000
2. Building & Construction - $124,000
3. Corporate law - $118,000
4. Family law - $97,000
Corporate Law earnings
Corporate law salaries range from $70,000 to $200,000.
Consultancy firm Taylor Root, published its “2020-21 Salary Guide & Market Report for the Banking & Financial Services Legal sector in Australia” iwhich looks at the salaries in various legal department.
General Counsel for a global company can earn between $285,000-$440,000.
However those working as General Counsel with multi-jurisdictional roles can earn more, ranging from $400,000 to $1m.
Criminal law earnings
Expected earnings from criminal defence lawyers will once again depend upon experience. Junior lawyers earn around $45,000, while the top end will be $150,000 or more.
According to PayScale, the average annual salary for a criminal lawyer is $72,075.
This will also be affected by which State and geographic locality in which they practice, as well as their expertise and experience.
Family law earnings
The average Family Lawyer salary in Australia is $ 68,993 according to PayScale.
At the lowest end of the scale are junior family lawyers who earn an average annual salary of $52,000.
Conversely, the top 10% of Family Lawyers earn an average annual salary of $133,000.
Barristers' Earnings
The average income for barristers in the 2017/18 financial year was starkly different when males and females were analysed separately.
Female barristers earned an average yearly income of $70,227. This was significantly less than their male counterparts who earned an average yearly income of $190,454.
These figures are amongst the highest gender gap in the country.
By way of comparison, in 2018/19 the average salary of females across all occupations was $49,922, while the average salary for males was $71,917.
