Mergers and Acquisitions Attorneys


Overview

Introduction

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) attorneys make sure laws are followed when a company merges with another company or when a company acquires another company. They may work in-house on the companys staff or, more commonly, as a specialist in an outside legal firm. They are knowledgeable about federal and state law. They must also have a working knowledge of tax law, employment and labor laws, environmental law, antitrust, intellectual property, corporate finance, and commercial law, among other areas. M&A lawyers oversee all as...

Quick Facts


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Median Salary

$120,910

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Employment Prospects

Good

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Minimum Education Level

Law Degree


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Experience

Three to four years experience


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Skills

Financial|Information Management|Research


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Personality Traits

Organized|Problem-Solving|Realistic

Earnings

Lawyers that specialized in mergers and acquisitions earned a median salary of $186,500 in February 2020, according to ZipRecruiter, with 25 percent earning $131,000 or less annually and another 25 percent earning $236,500 or more annually. Lawyers employed in the United States in May 2018 earned an average of $120,910 per year. The lowest 10 percent earned $58,220 or less, and the highest 10 p...

Work Environment

Mergers and acquisitions attorneys work in offices of medium and large corporate law firms. Their work day is spent on computers, reviewing and drafting documents and e-mailing with corporate clients and team members. They also spend some time traveling for meetings and for court appearances. Not all mergers and acquisitions are friendly; this coupled with deadline pressure often makes for a st...

Outlook

Mergers and acquisitions attorneys will have good employment opportunities in the coming years. Industry reports indicate that merger and acquisition activity will continue as companies look to expand their businesses.

The state of the economy determines the level of corporate mergers and acquisitions. For example, as stated by an industry expert cited in a Forbes article, durin...