In a regulatory landscape where fund managers are subject to greater scrutiny, the market for in-house legal and compliance personnel – including general counsels (GCs), chief compliance officers (CCOs) and junior staff – has flourished. Questions have arisen, however, as to whether the compensation of legal and compliance personnel will be affected by the increasingly volatile performance of private funds. In a recent interview with the Hedge Fund Law Report, David Claypoole, founder and president of Parks Legal Placement, shared detailed insight into the overall market for and compensation of legal and compliance personnel based on more than a decade of compensation data. In this article, the first in a two-part series, Claypoole discusses how recent hedge fund performance may affect GC and CCO compensation; trends he has identified in legal and compliance compensation; the drivers of compensation for top legal and compliance personnel; and the backgrounds of candidates vying for these positions. In the second installment in this series, Claypoole will share his thoughts on anticipated changes to the legal and compliance landscape under the new Trump administration, including a possible repeal of the Dodd-Frank Act; the movement of in-house staff from hedge funds to other industries or practices; and characteristics of successful in-house personnel. In April, Claypoole will be presenting on trends in legal and compliance compensation at GAIM Ops Cayman 2017. For more information on the conference, click here. To register for the conference, taking advantage of the HFLR’s promotional discount of 10% off the conference price (plus an additional $700 savings before February 17, 2017), click the link available in this article. For more from Claypoole, see his prior two-part interview on the market for in-house compensation at hedge fund managers: “What Is the Value of Legal and Compliance Staff?” (Mar. 12, 2015); and “Trends in Legal and Compliance Hiring and Staffing” (Mar. 19, 2015).