Other findings from the survey showed that nearly all respondents said they regularly worked overtime and that bonuses for junior lawyers were “opaque, scarce and of little value,” especially compared to the hours legal workers have to work to get them. Auckland firms offer special advocates and senior partners the best salaries in the country, according to a salary guide developed by recruitment agency Tyler Wren in partnership with College of Law New Zealand. A New Zealand survey of staff lawyers` salaries found little difference between the salaries of male and female lawyers with the same level of experience during their first decade of legal practice. The highest reported salary for a Law Society employee is currently NZ$NaN/year The New Zealand Law Society | The 2018 Legal Salary Survey conducted by Te Kāhui Ture o Aotearoa and the Niche Consulting Group (available on the Law Society`s website) showed that the national median salary for first-year individuals in the profession and small private practices was $50,000, with the average salary below $47,000 in the South Island. “If you look at the ALWU survey, the summaries of salaries and conditions in the report are largely correct, but our company`s third-year salary is in a higher range. As we have just completed our annual salary review, the information provided is now out of date. You can use our salary guide to compare your salary and ensure you get paid fairly and competitively. Salary benchmarking allows you to understand the average salary in New Zealand for your role and how your current employer`s salaries are compared, which can be helpful in determining your next career change. You`ll also have access to typical benefits offered by employers, such as flexible work practices, career development, and training to ensure your overall benefits package is competitive. Plus, take a look at your industry to learn how to stand out in today`s job market. The New Zealand Law Society and the Niche Consulting Group Legal Salary Survey 2018 surveyed lawyers employed by a law firm or working as in-house counsel, excluding partners or directors of law firms and lawyers. The survey was conducted among 7,688 lawyers, of whom 2,579 (33.6%) responded in whole or in part. This is the best response of five legal salary surveys conducted by the Law Society.

Legal recruiter Niche Consulting Group conducted the analysis. “It is encouraging that the survey found no discernible differences between women`s and men`s wages,” said Kathryn Beck, President of the New Zealand Law Society. Ms Beck said: “However, there were also notable gender differences in terms of hours worked, level of pay increase, benefits and other conditions of employment. Women also make up only one-third of the partners and directors of our law firms, which means that the average total remuneration of a female lawyer across the legal profession is lower than the average of a male lawyer. Statutory salary surveys are conducted in New Zealand by several organisations. The latest survey by the Australasian Legal Practice Management Association (ALPMA) and McLeod Duminy was completed on 14 February and the results were published last month. The results will be made available to participants free of charge, but non-participants will have to purchase the information. This means that all details, except high-level details, are not publicly available.

The survey provides average salaries for more than 55 legal, managerial and administrative positions in law firms, broken down by location and business size. If you want to better understand the average salary in New Zealand for your role and how some salaries compare to others in the same industry, you can take a paycheck today. Our salary checker compares the highest, typical, and lowest salaries for your position. Whether you`re interested in the typical salary of a lawyer, engineer, accountant, or architect, to name a few, you can choose from thousands of roles to compare the average New Zealand income for your job. In contrast, when their bi-weekly salaries are divided by working hours, the ALWU survey shows that many young lawyers work near or below the minimum wage. Of course, it`s not fair for junior lawyers to pay them less than $17.70 an hour for an hour of work that pays their employer ten times that amount. In addition, a survey conducted by the Aotearoa Lawful Workers Union (ALWU) and published last November shows that 50% of respondents (young and new lawyers) working in large law firms reported working for an effective hourly wage below the minimum wage when their fourteen-day salary was divided by the number of hours worked. Henderson added that he found the results of the ALWU investigation “bleak” and that it was “unacceptable” to work for less than minimum wage when total hours worked are taken into account. “This has allowed them to calibrate their workforce and attract people not only on the basis of salary. It has also allowed them to compete with the best levels that offer higher salary ranges,” said Tyler Wren. A recent survey conducted by NZ LAW Ltd and published in 2019 yielded similar results in terms of annual salaries. In this survey, the lowest full-time equivalent salary for a junior lawyer was $39,000, with a median salary of $49,272.

The median real wage was $46,750 per year. In addition to these basic rates, other non-salary benefits have been added for junior lawyers. “Some companies have candid conversations with potential employees regarding salary, hourly rate, annual budget and daily pay hours to formulate the right balance per person, and new attraction techniques and package options are being introduced to attract top talent,” the report`s authors explained. After a year like no other, our Salary Guide presents the recruitment and career plans of employers and professionals for the next 12 months. Based on a salary survey of nearly 3,500 companies and 3,800 professionals, we look at current headcounts, recruitment plans, and hiring trends.