Lawyer Salaries. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that the median annual wage for lawyers was about $114,970 in 2014, with the top 10 percent of earners taking home more than $187,199 per year.ecent data found that lawyers with ten or more years of experience working in a small law firm earned between $96,250 and $161,500, while those with only one-to-three years of experience earned between $56,500 and $90,250.
A trial court or court of first instance is a court having original jurisdiction, in which trials takes place. A trial court of general jurisdiction is authorized to hear some type of civil or criminal case that is not committed exclusively to another court.
General Structure of State Court Systems. The general workhorse of a state court system is the trial court. This is the lowest level of court and is usually the forum in which a case or lawsuit originates. It may be a court of general jurisdiction, such as a circuit or superior court, or it may be a court of special or limited jurisdiction, such as a probate, juvenile, traffic, or family court.