General counsel compensation climbs, aligned with equity and company scale

Legal chiefs’ compensation is increasing most at large public and private equity-backed companies, where stock and long-term incentives form a growing portion of pay. Salary growth has steadied, but gains increasingly track access to equity, company scale, and ownership structure. General counsels see a median salary increase of 3.5%, while managing and senior counsels see 3%. General counsels at $5 billion revenue companies earn a median $2.5 million, rising to $5.41 million at the 90th percentile. Private company general counsels earn $3.2 million, and portfolio-backed companies reach $3.39 million. Boards and CEOs increasingly expect GCs to function as full enterprise leaders rather than only heads of legal.

Read at ABA Journal