A 2026 View of Gender Pay Gaps in the Australian & New Zealand Legal Industries

The Australasian Legal Practice Management Association (ALPMA) has released findings from its 2026 HR Issues and Salary Survey, the most comprehensive benchmarking report in the legal profession across Australia and New Zealand, including, for the first time, a detailed gender-disaggregated salary analysis across both markets.

The survey captures over 10,500 salaries across more than 70 Australian roles (298 firms) and 4,390 salaries across more than 55 New Zealand roles (140 firms), benchmarked by firm size, state or region, practice area, and, new for 2026, gender.

Why Gender Data, Why Now

For several years, ALPMA’s annual survey asked Australian participants two questions: whether they believed a gender pay gap existed in the legal industry, and whether one existed at their own firm. The results were consistent: an emphatic yes to the first question, and an equally emphatic no to the second.

ALPMA decided to test that assumption directly.

“The data tells a more nuanced story than either a blanket denial or a wholesale indictment. Pay parity is broadly achieved at entry level in both countries, but the gap opens as careers progress, and it is most pronounced at the leadership level.”

ALPMA CEO / Emma Elliott

The Australian Picture

Australia’s findings are broadly encouraging at the junior end of the profession. Gender pay parity across Graduate to 4 Years PAE ranges from -1.1% to 1.2%, with a maximum dollar difference of approximately $1,000 across all five levels, negligible by any measure.

The picture shifts meaningfully from the mid-career mark. At the 4–5 Year PAE level, a gap of 6.8% in favour of males emerges, widening to 8.8% at the 6+ Year mark, representing a real-dollar difference of between $8,000 and $13,000 annually. At Associate and Senior Associate level, the gap narrows again to 1.1%–1.5%, or approximately $2,000.

At partner level, the data is more complex. The proportion of Female Equity Partners has increased by 10 percentage points since 2020, from 21% to 31%, a meaningful structural shift. However, a 7% gender pay gap persists at the Equity Partner level, equating to $23,000 per annum, with female equity partners also sitting below the overall position average of $315,000. Salaried Partners reflect a similar dynamic, with a 5.6% gap translating to $16,000 per year.

The most pronounced finding in the Australian data is at Managing Partner level, where women are $97,000 worse off with a gap of 25.8% reported in the data.

For context, Australia’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) publishes gender pay gaps for private companies with more than 100 employees, reporting the gap across Professional Services at 21%. Notably, 92% of firms participating in the ALPMA survey have fewer than 75 employees — placing them below mandatory reporting thresholds, but as these findings demonstrate, not beyond the reach of the underlying dynamics WGEA was established to address.

At the paralegal level, the Australian data offers a more positive signal: a gender pay gap of -5.3% to -9.6% favouring women, representing a $5,000–$7,000 real-dollar advantage.

The New Zealand Picture

New Zealand mirrors Australia’s entry-level parity. Graduate to 3 Years PQE shows differences ranging from -2.9% to 1.7%, with average salary differences of between -$1,000 and $2,000 — and with positive differences at this level favouring females.

From the 3 Year PQE mark, gaps emerge in a less linear pattern. The 3, 4 and 6 Year PQE levels show gaps of 4.1%–7.6%, equating to $4,000–$9,000. The 5 Year PQE level reverses, with women $9,000 better off (a 9.9% positive differential). Associate and Senior Associate levels again favour women at -0.9% to -2.7%, representing a $1,000–$4,000 advantage.

Partnership data in New Zealand aligns closely with Australia. Salaried Partners show a 6.8% gap unfavourable to women ($15,000), while Equity Partners sit at 7.9% ($23,000).

New Zealand’s Managing Partner result diverges sharply from Australia’s: women are $20,000 better off with an 8% positive differential.

Legal Executives in New Zealand represent the strongest positive finding for women in either market, with a gap of -13.2% to -15.8%, equating to approximately $12,000 in favour of women.

Unlike Australia, New Zealand does not currently mandate gender pay gap reporting for private employers. The Ministry for Women / Manatū Wāhine reported New Zealand’s national gender pay gap at 5.2% as of June 2025, a decrease from 8.2% the prior year. While no equivalent to WGEA exists for the New Zealand private sector, the moral obligations, and as this data shows, the underlying dynamics, are present regardless.

What the Data Means

The consistent pattern across both jurisdictions is clear: pay parity at entry gives way to compounding disadvantage as careers progress, with the most significant gaps concentrated at senior and leadership levels. The data also confirms that firm-level perception and firm-level reality are not the same thing.

ALPMA will continue to collect gender-disaggregated salary data in future survey iterations, providing the profession with the longitudinal benchmarks needed to track progress, or the absence of it.

About the ALPMA HR Issues & Salary Survey

The ALPMA HR Issues & Salary Survey is conducted annually and represents the most comprehensive workforce benchmarking tool available to law firm leaders across Australia and New Zealand. Part One covers HR issues including predicted salary movements, bonus structures, charge-out rates, billable targets, and recruitment and retention metrics. Part Two benchmarks individual role salaries segmented by firm size, geography, practice area, and gender.

The 2026 reports can be found on the ALPMA website here: