Legal counsel job description: template and real figures
A template for hiring a legal counsel, with what employers in today’s 981 open postings for this work ask for and offer. Copy it, fill in the brackets, then post the job free.
- Open postings today
- 981
- Experience asked, median
- 5 years
- Postings that state pay
- 51%
- Median advertised pay
- $228K
- Open to remote work
- 22%
Commercial Counsel [Company] · [City, or Remote and the countries it is open to] · [Full-time] About us [Two sentences: what the company does, for whom, and one number that shows where it is now.] About the role Our Commercial Counsel advises a company on the law: contracts, products, disputes, regulators. You will report to [manager’s title] and work with [team]. What you will do - [The most important result of the first year, with a number] - Contract drafting: [what this means in your team] - Negotiation: [what this means in your team] - Commercial law: [what this means in your team] - Advising the business: [what this means in your team] - [One more duty that is specific to this job] What we are looking for - [5]+ years of experience as a legal counsel - [One or two must-haves that are specific to this job] Pay and benefits - Pay range: $[lowest] – $[highest] a year, [plus equity or bonus if any] - Parental leave - Equity - Unlimited PTO - [Paid time off, health cover and the rest of your benefits] How to apply [What to send, the interview steps and how long they take. Name the date you will reply by.]
What today’s legal counsel postings say
| Experience asked | Median 5 years; the middle half ask 3–7 years (684 postings name a number) |
|---|---|
| Pay advertised | $192K – $270K for the middle half; median $228K (465 postings with a yearly US-dollar range) |
| Benefits named most | Parental leave (22%), Equity (18%), Unlimited PTO (5%) |
| Most common level | Senior (22% of postings) |
| Titles employers use | Commercial Counsel, Trial Attorney, Legal Counsel, Counsel – Settlement Team, Workers' Compensation Attorney, Corporate Counsel |
Counted from the 981 open postings for this work on Nov 14, 2026, read from employers’ own careers pages. Recounted on every update.
Questions about hiring a legal counsel
- What should a legal counsel job description include?
- What the person will achieve in the first year, the duties, the must-have experience, the pay range and how the hiring steps work. Use the words candidates search for, not internal team names.
- Should a legal counsel job posting show the salary?
- Yes, if you can: 51% of today’s 981 open legal counsel postings here do. A range filters out people who would turn the offer down, and several US states and EU countries now require it.
- How many years of experience should I ask for?
- The median in today’s legal counsel postings is 5 years. Ask for what the work needs: every extra year you require shrinks the pool of applicants.
Everything about legal counsel work
See also: 981 open legal counsel jobs · legal counsel pay · how to hire a legal counsel · all job description templates