Lawyer Salary in Canada
In 2025, the median wage for lawyers was $59.76/hr.
Lawyers in Canada
The lawyer occupation in Canada remains a well paid but competitive profession, with about 124,300 lawyers and Quebec notaries employed nationwide in 2023. Median wages are approximately $59.76 per hour nationally, although experienced lawyers in provinces such as Alberta can earn well above $100 per hour. Demand for lawyers is supported by population growth, increasing regulatory complexity, business activity, immigration, and ongoing needs in areas such as family law, corporate law, labour law, and litigation. Recent trends also show growing demand for legal expertise related to technology, privacy, artificial intelligence, and compliance. Despite these opportunities, the profession remains highly competitive in major urban centres because of the large number of law graduates entering the market each year. Job Bank projects that labour demand and labour supply for lawyers will remain broadly balanced from 2024 to 2033, with moderate job prospects in most provinces, including Ontario and Quebec, while some regions such as British Columbia and Atlantic Canada show somewhat stronger outlooks. Retirement demand is expected to contribute to openings over the coming decade, although the profession has a relatively high median retirement age of 69 years, meaning many lawyers continue working later in life. Overall, the occupation offers strong earning potential and stable long term demand, but success increasingly depends on specialization, networking, and adaptability to technological change within the legal sector.
| LAWYER (NOC 41101) | |||
| 2025 | Wages/hr | ||
| Community/Area | Low | Median | High |
| Canada | 30.22 | 59.76 | 107.14 |
| Newfoundland & L. | 34.87 | 66.85 | 87.91 |
| Prince Edward Island | 25.64 | 57.69 | 81.03 |
| Nova Scotia | 24.13 | 56.15 | 80.99 |
| New Brunswick | 36.06 | 59.94 | 72.12 |
| Quebec | 29.81 | 51.28 | 84.13 |
| Ontario | 32.05 | 65.21 | 112.98 |
| Manitoba | 16.83 | 47.18 | 81.28 |
| Saskatchewan | 32.05 | 57.88 | 92.31 |
| Alberta | 27.88 | 78.85 | 126.92 |
| British Columbia | 37.98 | 65.00 | 107.69 |
| Yukon Territory | 40.00 | 61.54 | 76.92 |
| Northwest Territories | N/A | 64.41 | N/A |
| Nunavut | 45.64 | 68.33 | 89.04 |
| Source: Job Bank. 2026 | |||
In 2016, the median wage for lawyers in Canada was $107,829/year.
In 2016, lawyers in Prince Edward Island reported lower wages.
| LAWYERS AND QUEBEC NOTARIES (NOC 4112-A) | |||
| 2016 | Wages ($/yr) | ||
| Low | Median | High | |
| Canada | 37,196 | 107,829 | 298,942 |
| Ontario | 42,397 | 125,031 | 375,235 |
| Alberta | 47,882 | 130,981 | 344,279 |
| British Columbia | 39,811 | 106,361 | 269,702 |
| Newfoundland & L. | 54,763 | 105,230 | 240,250 |
| Québec | 26,121 | 81,914 | 208,319 |
| Manitoba | 29,372 | 100,617 | 193,674 |
| Saskatchewan | 47,821 | 112,217 | 187,906 |
| Yukon | 64,992 | 107,660 | 177,844 |
| New Brunswick | 42,203 | 88,838 | 168,840 |
| Nova Scotia | 25,451 | 86,337 | 159,515 |
| Northwest Territories | 48,670 | 96,141 | 153,496 |
| Prince Edward Island | 31,248 | 94,069 | 139,852 |
| Nunavut | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Source: Job Bank. November 2016* | |||
*Wages are reviewed and updated on the Job Bank Web site on an annual basis.
Licensing
Lawyers are regulated everywhere in Canada. In order to use one of the reserved titles, you are required to be registered with a provincial or territorial regulatory authority to be authorized to practise as a lawyer anywhere in Canada.
