U.S. FEDResearch
Plaintiff firms pay first-year lawyers $131,313 on average, inaugural NPLA salary survey finds
First-year attorneys at plaintiff-side law firms earn an average of $131,313 a year, according to the National Plaintiffs' Law Association's first salary report. Pay tracks firm size: firms with more than 100 attorneys average $160,857, while those with fewer than 20 average $106,111. The survey of 80 plaintiff-side attorneys, conducted in late 2024 and early 2025, also found wide variation in raises and bonuses.
Key points
- Bonuses averaged $21,195, with a median of $15,000.ABA Journal
- About 49% of firms surveyed had structured or lockstep raises; 21.5% had no policy.ABA Journal
- Nearly 17% used purely discretionary or merit-based raises.ABA Journal
- The study surveyed 80 plaintiff-side attorneys.ABA Journal