What Do I Say When a Law Firm Interviewer Asks for My Salary Expectations?

Question:

What do I say when a law firm interviewer asks for my salary expectations? Do I need to disclose my current/prior salary?

• When Asked about "Salary Expectations" in an Interview How Should I Respond?
• Answering Questions about Salary During a Law Firm Interview

It's best to be flexible on salary, especially the more senior you get into your career, because firms diverge wildly on the way they structure their salary, billing rates, bonuses, billable hours requirements, and everything else associated with what will (hopefully) be your total compensation package should you receive and accept an offer.

I have seen candidates initially balk at a base salary number only to find out that the firm's billable hours requirement is much lower than their previous firm, and that because the bonus threshold starts earlier, they would end up with comparable take-home compensation for an equivalent number of hours, with the added bonus of having less pressure to hit a higher number year-after-year.

If you do have an absolute "floor" where it would not make sense for you to take a salary lower than a particular number, you should definitely make sure to disclose this to your recruiter and/or to any firm with which you are interviewing. However, before you tie yourself to this number, I strongly advise you do your due diligence and consider a number of salient factors such as:

• How badly do you need/want a new position? If it is the difference between less salary than you would like or no salary because you do not have a job, you would be foolish to pass up the lower salary number.
• How does the salary and bonus structure compare to the market in which you are looking? I have had far too many candidates represent themselves as extremely eager to relocate to a "desirable" city such as Portland, Seattle, Denver, etc., only to turn around and complain that the salary is not what they "expected" because they were used to seeing market-level salaries in the major cities such as New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and D.C.

Smaller markets will mean smaller salaries (and lower billable hours requirements, earlier thresholds for bonuses, lower billing rates that can help you more easily build your own portable client base, and of course a lower cost of living compared to the aforementioned major cities).Take the whole picture into account before being stubborn about your number.

Getting back to the original question, unless you know what a particular firm pays at a particular class level and/or unless you have an absolute minimum number requirement, the best answer to give is that you would expect to be compensated at the amount equivalent to a normal associate/Of Counsel/Partner at your level of experience for that firm and that office.

There is always the possibility of negotiating once you see the actual number, and firms can be accommodating in a variety of ways, such as signing bonuses if their internal policies prevent them from increasing your base salary relative to your class year. But you do not want to scare off a potential suitor firm with an unrealistic number, and you especially do not want to turn down a solid offer and come away empty handed with the distinct possibility of regretting your decision when no additional interviews or offers materialize.

A good recruiter will be able to guide and advise you as to salary expectations, and if you are looking to embark on a lateral job search, please contact us here at BCG.

To know the current legal salary information nationwide, Check Here.

See the following for more information about interviewing:

• 21 Major Interview Mistakes to Avoid at All Costs
• The Best Way to Prepare for a Job Search and Interviews
• How to Talk About Other Interviews in Your Interviews
• How to Answer the Tell Me About Yourself Interview Question
• How to Answer the Do You Have Any Questions for Me Interview Question
• Law Firm Interview Resources