How much can I earn as a lawyer?

I want to be a lawyer. I am certain that I want to work with either criminal, corporate or comparative law.

I know that comparative law would be a good choice for me, as I have gone to school there for almost ten years, and lived there for longer. I have an extensive knowledge about every aspect of the country. But how much would I be able to earn as a comparative lawyer?

And can I make a lot of money in criminal law?

The first-year associates at big law firms in New York and other big cities start at 165K a year plus bonuses. Some law firms do criminal offense. To work at a big firm straight from law school, you have to have very good grades, probably be on a law journal and/or moot court, and go to a good law school. These people work 80 hours a week, it is NOT a 9 to 5 lifestyle. Also, at these big firms you tend to sort of go where they need you, and don't always get to pick your area of practice.

Criminal prosecutors fresh out of law school make approximately 40 to 60K depending on the state/city.

I am not sure what you mean by comparative lawyer. Do you mean international law?

If you go to law school, unless you get full scholarships and your parents help you with rent/tuition/living expenses, you will come out of school with 100K in loans or more.

If you are interested in money only, I would suggest going into business or something- it is very few that make the huge bucks right out of school, and they have little to no life outside of work.

Salary and Pay for Lawyers

This varies quite a bit, of course, based on experience and specialty. Moreover, many lawyers work for themselves. They charge their clients an hourly rate.

For some general sense, here is some data from the U.S. Department of Labor:

In 2002, the median annual earnings of all lawyers was $90,290. The middle half of the occupation earned between $61,060 and $136,810. The lowest paid 10 percent earned less than $44,490; at least 10 percent earned more than $145,600. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of lawyers in 2002 are given in the following tabulation:

* Management of companies and enterprises $131,970
* Federal government $98,790
* Legal services $93,970
* Local government $69,710
* State government $67,910

Median salaries of lawyers 6 months after graduation from law school in 2001 varied by type of work, as indicated here:

All graduates: $60,000

Private practice: $90,000

Business/industry: $60,000

Judicial clerkship and government: $40,300

Academe: $40,000

Depends........your dad own the law firm........are your grades 4.0 + how hard are you willing to work.........not enough infor.....