The good sides of joining a corporate legal department as compared to a law firm

The Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, in partnership with the law firm of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg, asked its members about the advantages of working within a company over working in a law firm. It gave the respondents a dozen items and asked them to rate the items from 0 to 10.

Here are the dozen, from the 2007 In-House Corporate Counsel Barometer, at 7, and the percentage of the 722 respondents who ranked the item in their top three choices. Being an active part of business decisions (72%), applying legal training to a business environment (64%), enhancement of business skills (62%), variety of legal work (57%), working for one client (55%), work hours (48%), non-legal career advancement opportunities (43%), benefits package (39%), variable compensation (bonus/stock options) (29%), prestige of the organization (24%), perks (21%), and legal career advancement opportunities (12%).

It’s worth heeding that the lowest-ranked five have to do with money, whereas the top three choices each integrate legal and business capabilities.