Paralegal Schools – life after graduation

QUALIFICATION
In the US a paralegal will usually have a completed one of the 250 odd paralegal courses (including paralegal degrees) offered by one of the 1000 or so paralegal schools. In the UK a paralegal may have a paralegal educational qualification, or may have qualified through accreditation of some prior work experience.

TYPICAL DAILY TASKS
In legal firms, Paralegals mostly work as assistants to lawyers, bridging the gap between the work that only lawyers can do, and that which requires no, or certainly a very limited, knowledge of the law and its processes. This work typically consists of researching case information, drafting documents, and similar rather specialised clerical and administrative tasks. Outside law companies, paralegals may conduct tasks where they have specialist knowledge of niche areas of the law and its implementation – e.g. Contract Managers, Health & Safety Officers, Company Secretaries, etc.

PERSONAL TRAITS OF A TYPICAL PARALEGAL
Paralegal work is suited to a whole range of people, but the key traits of those likely to be well suited to become a paralegal are:
Responsibility – A paralegal has to take responsibility for seeing tasks through to completion.
Trust, Honesty and Integrity – A paralegal has to have the trust of clients and colleagues to complete tasks to the best of their ability, working on the client’s behalf with no conflict of interest.
IT skills – most paralegal jobs require a high degree of IT skills for documentation and research.
Attention to detail – Paralegals need the ability to see the detail of what needs to be done, and also to make sure that it is done.

Be good with people
If you’d like to assess your own suitability to work as a Paralegal, it is possible to undertake an online psychometric test

PARALEGAL EARNINGS
Paralegal salaries range widely, depending on experience and employer.

In the US a paralegal salaries range from starting salaries of around $25,000 in smaller government offices, to more than $65,000 plus benefits for senior posts in bigger law firms. The average US paralegal salary is around $45,000.

In the UK there is a similar distribution, with a starting salary of around £14,000 in smaller law firms, ranging to higher-ranking salaries of £80,000 in bigger city practices. Additionally, paralegals may work freelance for a daily or hourly rate.
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