Donna Campbell, writing for National Jurist, digs into Robert Half’s 2027 Salary Guide with the firm’s Jamy Sullivan, and the AI skills pay premium is real: 77% of law firms are increasing pay for relevant AI expertise, 67% across legal employers overall. And 74% of legal employers are offering higher-than-planned salaries to land new hires, against 57% across all the fields Robert Half surveyed.
The piece is written for law students, but the in-house line is the one to circle: starting pay for in-house counsel with four to nine years of experience is projected to rise 3.4% in 2027. That is starting pay for new roles, not raises for staying put, so the bump comes when you move. We covered the full Robert Half salary guide last month. Our future-proofing guide covers how to show AI skills, and AI counsel jobs is where they pay.
For context: “Those increases exceed the 2.2% average growth Sullivan said Robert Half expects across legal positions.”
Read: Law firms paying more for AI skills, creating opportunities for law graduates at National Jurist