- law dawg
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Each year at this time we like to take a look at salaries and bonuses. In years past, we did a compensation survey to give you an idea of how much money attorneys in Las Vegas make. You can see the results for 2017 and 2016 by clicking on the links. (Arizona does its own detailed survey every three years on a much larger scale. You can view the 2022 results in Arizona Attorney magazine. While’s it not exactly the same as Nevada, it has some useful information to consider.) What do you think about the current state of pay for attorneys here? Are you underpaid or overpaid? Did you get a bonus? Has your billable hour requirement gone up or down this year? Any predictions on where compensation is headed? Is inflation dramatically altering your firm’s pay structure?
For those of you willing to share some details about your pay, we suggest leaving a comment that puts some your information in the following format: [Years in practice]-[Type of practice: CR for criminal, CI for civil, F for family, G for government, P for private practice]-[2024 gross salary to the nearest $10K+bonus if any](Yearly billable requirement). Example for someone who has practiced for 17 years and does private practice criminal defense for a gross salary of $387,000 with no bonus other than being their own boss with no billable requirement:
17-CR/P-390,000+no bonus(none)
We know it’s not exact, but maybe it will help someone else in the legal community figure out what they should be making.
13 – CI (In-house) – $170k+$5k bonus (no billables)
Nice! Hope you have a good work life balance as well.
It’s not too bad. No billables is really the nice part – I can take a Friday off (or leave early for a thing at the kid’s school) and not have to worry about making up those hours so I can hit 167 this month.
1 – F – Small Firm – $52k – Bonus? None so far but my self-gifting bonus is getting out of family law early in the year because the judges seem crazier than shithouse rats.
Maybe I’m an out of touch boomer, but $52k seems woefully low, even for a 1st year.
What are ID firms starting at these days? $90k? More?
OP here, I blame myself, I actually did well in law school but thought I wanted family law so took a job with a very small firm (don’t want to out myself) and now I hate it. Im young enough I hope I can get into another area and no one will look down upon this misstep.
All experience is valuable. It’s not a misstep. Don’t frame it that way in your interviews.
Not a misstep. You thought you wanted one thing, tried it, didn’t like it, and now want to go somewhere else.
I think the vast majority of lawyers here have done that too. Everyone needs to find a place that is a good fit for them.
You can change practice areas. Lots of people do. One advantage family court has is that you are always in court, always drafting discovery and filings, and lots of direct contact with clients. Those are all very marketable skills.
And yes, $52k is ridiculous. Get out of that firm ASAP. I made more than that my first year out of law school and I’ve been practicing pretty close to 20 years.
OP here. You all made my day seriously. Thank you so much!!
I made more than that in 2000 as a first year assoc. You are getting ripped off and taken advantage of.
Dear 1F:
If you want to send my firm a resume, we would be happy to speak with you.
There is no money in family law. Just stress and ingratitude. Get into Plaintiff’s personal injury ASAP.
You are better than family law and you know it. When you go to interview for a real lawyer position, there are ways to say, “I want out of the family law cesspool” without saying it. “I’ve been able to learn a lot during my time in family law, and now I am ready to take on [X] pratice area, which I am extremely interested in because of [1, 2, 3]. These specific skills from my time in family law are an asset to your firm….”
@12:37, 11:06 here. I want to disagree with you, but you’re right. Your comment made me literally LOL. Family court is a real shit hole.
OP you’ve got some good advice from folks here. Make the move now and get out of there. You should be making at least double what you’re currently being paid and you can practice in front of slightly less crazy judges.
Absolute shit hole full of terrible people that all deserve each other, from the litigants, to the “lawyers”, the judges, and the wacky activists. The only people that don’t deserve it are the kids.
After leaving family law, I miss the family court judge circus
Same! lol
7-Cl/P-150k+50k (none)
Work for myself, almost entirely transactional law. Pay myself 150 as salary, and usually give myself a bonus of about 50 depending on the year.
Equity partner of a boutique firm here in town. We start associates at $125k. Highest base salary for non-partner is $235k (15 years’ experience). Bonuses are based on hours. Smallest bonus was $8k, highest bonus was $55k.
Hiring?
8-Ci/P-$170,000+No bonus(1,900)
17-CI/P-650,000+no bonus (equity partner)(no specific billable requirement)
drop the name right now
3 – CI/P – $155,000 + $10,000(1900)
16-CR/P-$260,000 no bonus but have a great work/life balance
$13 CI/P – $396k (base plus commissions), %5k Christmas bonus. This was my best year ever. Normally around $260k.
16-CI/G-$135,000 + no bonus but we do get paid vacation days. Despite no billable hour requirement, we still have to enter all our time. Work life balance is okay if you don’t mind the work part being pretty miserable.
Silent office halls,
No bonus under the tree—
Justice feels distant.
I like that one
I do remember from my time in Govt the odd billing requirements and entries. I hated having the discussion with my ‘rank and file’ attorneys about the requirements and ‘redlining’ them.
Tell me you work for the AG without telling me you work for the AG.
Just over a year in practice – CI (small plaintiffs firm with 5 attorneys) – $100,000 with a recent raise to $150,000 + extra paycheck at the end of the year.
And this is why defense firms are constantly losing associates to pltf side. It feels like there is a better ‘median’ level on pltf side and perceived ability to ‘hit it big’ and a much lower ceiling (albeit with security) for the associates at defense side.
I think that’s an accurate reflection of the situation based on what I’ve heard from friends from my graduation class.
Respected defense firm offered me $125k earlier this year to leave my firm. It was tempting, but I’m glad to have stuck around. Mentioned that to my boss when he wanted to discuss my raise, so something tells me that may have factored into his decision. Not sure if he was worried about me being poached by defense or not.
14 CI-P Defense, 185K Non Equity expected $25-30K bonus.
15 — in-house — $400k + 45% bonus and 45% equity (subject to vesting). Pro forma comp is around $760k but my realized comp is largely dependent on stock price performance.
And, are you hiring?
General Counsel?
8-CI/P- 260k+$30,000(1900)
More details please
This Nevada comp survey was just posted to a lawyer facebook group: https://qualtricsxmh5hy8czk2.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3HFQXqMHM1GxdOK
It’s only like 14 questions
what’s the fb group?
Can we get results
18-CI/G-$190,000 + sellback a few days of unused PTO for my “bonus”
7-CI/G-$150,000 (No bonus) (No billables) + 4/10s
How do you like the 4 day week vs 5 days? Is it all in-office? Worth making a switch?
I am not 8:23 but work in government. I love the 4 day work week (extra work/longer hours on occasion but much less than private practice – but no real bonuses); attorneys are generally expected to work from the office but can work from home a few times a month or when needed – very reasonable; for me it was worth changing to the public sector, but you have to find the right spot – politics (both institutional and actual politicians) can make or break an otherwise good job. Cheers!
Honestly I don’t know if I could ever go back. Every weekend is a three-day weekend. Most three-day weekends are now 4-day weekends or I get bonus leave (for holidays falling on Friday) that I can use like vacation whenever I want. Because I have free time during the week now I don’t have to burn vacation doing errands so I can either take longer vacations or sell-back my vacation for a bonus at the end of the year. Ours is all in office but I know some of the other cities/agencies have a hybrid model. I ended up taking a 35% pay decrease moving over from private practice and I don’t regret it at all. Living life free of the 6-minute increments has been a revelation.
15 F CI self employed. Excited bc I was in a terrible marriage that effected my well-being and work life, and now I’m divorced and everything is great. $475,000 and bonus of a vacation home and nice watch.
15- CI/Blog – $0 + No bonus (but lots of thwacks)
10 – In-House – $190k + 25% bonus + 15% equity
14 – CI/P – $180K – $18K+ bonus – 1900 hours
I switched my practice area –twice. I’m happy where I am now, but definitely feel behind the ball for my years in practice
16-CR/P-870,00+no bonus(none)
TL: DR
Analysis
Early-Career Compensation: Some first-year or newer attorneys reported salaries as low as $52k in small family law firms. This is on the low end given that others in comparable positions elsewhere may earn closer to $90k or more. Those with low salaries often state intentions to move to higher-paying roles or different practice areas.
Mid-Career and In-House: Mid-career attorneys (roughly 7–10 years of experience) often reported salaries in the $150k–$260k range, sometimes coupled with bonuses from $5k to $30k. In-house counsel positions tend to emphasize quality of life and no-billable environments, albeit with varying salary and bonus structures.
Solo and Boutique Firm Dynamics: Several attorneys who are partners or run their own practices indicated they pay themselves a “base salary” (often around $150k–$200k) and then take bonuses based on firm profit. Some solos see wider earnings swings depending on caseload and overhead costs.
High-End Outliers: A few participants (particularly those with 15+ years of experience or in equity partner/generally counsel roles) reported compensation packages well above $400k or more. These often involve equity or commission elements that can push total compensation much higher if a firm or company performs well.
Billable Hours vs. Work-Life Balance: Many commenters compare demanding hours in private practice with more flexible schedules in government or in-house positions. While government roles tend to offer lower pay, they often come with 4-day workweeks, fewer hours, or other quality-of-life perks. Several attorneys consider reduced stress or flexible schedules more valuable than a top-tier salary.
Influence of Inflation and Market Shifts: Some indicated that inflation and an increasingly competitive hiring environment are driving salaries higher. Meanwhile, others see moderate or no bonus adjustments in their firms, suggesting uneven responses to broader economic changes.
Conclusion
Overall, the data reveal a broad range of attorney compensation in the Las Vegas market: from low-paying first-year jobs (around $50k) to highly paid partner or in-house roles that can exceed $500k–$800k. Attorneys weigh the trade-offs between higher compensation, quality of life, and practice area demands. This snapshot of self-reported data suggests that while some are underpaid or feel stuck, many have opportunities to negotiate or move into better-paying roles—especially if they have marketable skills or experience.