Derivatives lawyers up the pay stakes

With headhunters battering down their doors, derivatives lawyers globally have not been slow to ask for higher pay.

In London, Siobhan Lewington at search firm Sheffield Haworth says mid-level derivatives lawyers with five years' post qualification experience can command a base salary of between 90,000 ($158,000, €131,000) and 100,000, with a bonus of 100% or more.

In New York, Edna Messick at E M Messick Legal Recruiting & Consulting, says banks pay derivatives lawyers with five years' experience a salary in the region of $150,000, plus a bonus of around 160%.

In Continental Europe, pay is predictably lower. In Milan, Maximillian Redolfi at Michael Page says lawyers with knowledge of derivative documentation can command a base salary of €80,000, plus a 25% bonus. Frankfurt-based Gary Mackney of Neumann Legal Recruitment says German derivatives lawyers can expect a base salary of €120,000, plus a 30% to 70% bonus. In Paris, Antoine Morgaut at Robert Walters says lawyers with experience in products such as collateralised debt obligations can command total packages of €140,000 or more.

In all countries, banks pay mid-ranking derivatives lawyers substantially more than law firms, where base salaries are comparable but bonuses substantially lower. Law firms are digging deep in response: Allen & Overy reportedly boosted salaries for non-partner level lawyers in its London office by 20% last October.

But once lawyers at law firms make it to partner, the financial incentive to quit for a bank disappears. Partners at law firms can make 800,000 or more. Similar packages for general counsels at investment banks are rare.