Compensation of legal and compliance personnel at hedge fund managers is a complex and opaque topic.  In a recent interview with the Hedge Fund Law Report, David Claypoole, founder and President of Parks Legal Placement LLC, shared detailed insight into the overall market for and compensation of legal and compliance personnel, including general counsels (GCs), chief compliance officers (CCOs) and junior legal and compliance personnel.  In this article, the first in a two-part series, Claypoole discusses the factors that affect GC and CCO compensation; the current market standard compensation for legal and compliance personnel; how compensation of dual-hatted employees compares to compensation of single-role GCs and CCOs; trends in how GCs and CCOs are viewed by employers; compensation of junior legal and compliance personnel; when junior people reach their “legal bar mitzvah”; what makes an “exceptional” legal or compliance candidate; and how compensation of hedge fund GCs and CCOs compares to compensation of similar personnel at private equity and other types of managers.  In the second installment in the series, Claypoole will share his thoughts on the relationship between fund performance and compensation; trends in legal and compliance compensation, including with respect to junior compliance personnel; investments by legal and compliance personnel in the funds for which they work; and reporting lines for GCs and CCOs.  See also “How Much Are Hedge Fund Manager General Counsels and Chief Compliance Officers Paid?,” Hedge Fund Law Report, Vol. 7, No. 28 (Jul. 24, 2014); and “Annual Greenwich Associates and Johnson Associates Report Reveals Trends in Compensation of Investment Professionals at Buy-Side Firms,” Hedge Fund Law Report, Vol. 6, No. 48 (Dec. 19, 2013).  Claypoole will expand on the thoughts in this series at GAIMOps Cayman, to be held in the Cayman Islands from April 26-29, 2015.  For more information about GAIMOps Cayman, click here; to register for the conference, click here.