Lawyer Salary

Originally Posted by Unregistered

in case i wasn't clear enough, a number of ppl i know in the big 4 have second lower. not uncommon.

No one is disputing there ate 2:2s in Big4. But these are the minority. If for example there is a sudden surge in intake at Oxbridge and all came back with 1st or 2:1 gunning for the Big4, you can bet that a 2:2 from NUS (or from Oxbridge etc) chances would be slim though not impossible.

It is important to highlight these for those lawyers wannabe gunning for the Big4. Just a caution not to put your hopes up too high and to always have a backup plan just in case things dont work out. I know too many young grads wanting only the Big4 and would never dream of even trying for eg. Family or Criminal law in small boutique firms (that pays maybe a paltry 2k or 2.5k). If Law is really your passion, go for it. If earning big bucks is your only goal, then work extra hard in Law School and hope for the best.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

It is important to highlight these for those lawyers wannabe gunning for the Big4. Just a caution not to put your hopes up too high and to always have a backup plan just in case things dont work out. I know too many young grads wanting only the Big4 and would never dream of even trying for eg. Family or Criminal law in small boutique firms (that pays maybe a paltry 2k or 2.5k). If Law is really your passion, go for it. If earning big bucks is your only goal, then work extra hard in Law School and hope for the best.

the pay diff is indeed big.

small to mid sized: 3-4 ish K. big 4 (1st yr): 6K; (2nd yr): 7K with front loading approx.

During our law school admission interview, when the interviewers asked us why we wanted to study law, 99.9% of us lied and gave them the answers they wanted to hear.

- the money is not important, it's a calling
- it's a profession, not just a career
- justice, protecting the vulnerable
- other pretentious cr@p.

It's the hard truth. Most of us are money-grubbing mercenaries. The interviewers knew that, and I suspect what they really wanted to see was how convincingly we told our lies. Good liars make good lawyers.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

During our law school admission interview, when the interviewers asked us why we wanted to study law, 99.9% of us lied and gave them the answers they wanted to hear.

- the money is not important, it's a calling
- it's a profession, not just a career
- justice, protecting the vulnerable
- other pretentious cr@p.

It's the hard truth. Most of us are money-grubbing mercenaries. The interviewers knew that, and I suspect what they really wanted to see was how convincingly we told our lies. Good liars make good lawyers.

you're full of ****. also, hyperbole has no place in the legal profession

99.9% of "us" did not all lie. We just had no idea what we wanted to do. When you are 18 years' old, anything and everything seems like a potential 'calling in life'.it also helps that this potential 'calling in life' was one of the most competitive courses to get into locally, and had a layman's reputation of paying well - hence *prestige*. half of the law students would've jumped at a place in medicine if given the chance

Originally Posted by Unregistered

in case i wasn't clear enough, a number of ppl i know in the big 4 have second lower. not uncommon.

please also note that the "number of people you know" probably graduated one or two years back and are already IN the profession. if this forum is to be of any use to those people who want to ENTER the profession, then you've got to take the future market conditions into account. with the 93397397535+++ law graduates flooding into singapore every year, statements like these are pretty useless and out of touch.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

half of the law students would've jumped at a place in medicine if given the chance

that's true, a lot of law sch students are med sch rejects. and i dunno if it's strange but most of them are also from rj, hci and vj sci rather than arts. i knew a couple of ppl who did one sem and left for med sch in uk or down under.


please also note that the "number of people you know" probably graduated one or two years back and are already IN the profession. if this forum is to be of any use to those people who want to ENTER the profession, then you've got to take the future market conditions into account. with the 93397397535+++ law graduates flooding into singapore every year, statements like these are pretty useless and out of touch.[/QUOTE]
yup, i'm not disputing that. they grad/called in 2008-2012. guess the competition got much stiffer from last year. the no. of vacancies for trainees seem to be dropping too. more of replacement positions from departing lawyers than expansion.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

half of the law students would've jumped at a place in medicine if given the chance

that's true, a lot of law sch students are med sch rejects. and i dunno if it's strange but most of them are also from rj, hci and vj sci rather than arts. i knew a couple of ppl who did one sem and left for med sch in uk or down under.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

please also note that the "number of people you know" probably graduated one or two years back and are already IN the profession. if this forum is to be of any use to those people who want to ENTER the profession, then you've got to take the future market conditions into account. with the 93397397535+++ law graduates flooding into singapore every year, statements like these are pretty useless and out of touch.

yup, i'm not disputing that. they grad/called in 2008-2012. guess the competition got much stiffer from last year. the no. of vacancies for trainees seem to be dropping too. more of replacement positions from departing lawyers than expansion.

Does anyone know the starting salary for NQ for firms just below the big 4, like Rodyk, Shook Lin, KhattarWong? Thanks.

5-7K after 6 months

the big 4 is about 5.8-6.2k, so presumably the variance is about 800-1k.

since it is peak season to apply for TCs and given that there are so many seasoned lawyers hanging around here - i thought i would take the opportunity to ask some questions that you can't usually get away with in normal interviews.

1. how is the culture in a big 4 firm like? does it differ drastically from the mid firms (e.g. Rodyk, Shook Lin, TSMP)?
i understand that most of the time it really does differ from team to team; i've had amazing internships with X team in A firm, while most of my peers found said firm to be off-putting. but i was hoping that someone could possibly give just a bit of insight into their department/firm, if that is even possible.

2. is it a better idea to do your training at a big4 firm > the other big-mid firms? in terms of exposure to more interesting work and deals, working under more experienced partners, better resources, etc. does it really make a difference?

3. any general advice for someone looking to gain a place in corp/M&A and within a big 4 firm.