How to Become a Paralegal

If you are interested in working in the law field but don’t think you have what it takes to be a lawyer, getting a paralegal degree might be right for you. A paralegal, or legal assistant, is a lawyer’s assistant designated work under the supervision of a lawyer or law agency. This can be a challenging but rewarding career for anyone willing to put the time and effort into it. Paralegals work in many types of settings, including small town law offices, large legal firms and state and federal agencies. The paralegal field is becoming widely accepted by the ABA and paralegals are becoming needed more than ever in the government as they save time and provide more affordable service to clients.

Degree programs are available in all levels online and in traditional colleges. Lawyers and law agencies value paralegals with work experience and/or a college degree. If you are starting from the bottom and don’t have your foot in the door with paralegal work experience, it is a good idea to think about getting a paralegal degree. Paralegal programs offered are paralegal certificates, associates degrees, bachelor’s degrees, and master’s degrees. Many paralegals start out with a certificate or an associates degree to get their foot in the door. Once they have experience, they might choose to advance their education for better opportunities in the paralegal work field.

Depending on the work setting, education level, and experience of a paralegal, they get paid a good salary and have good benefits, Generally, a paralegal working in a large law firm or federal agency gets a higher pay than a paralegal working in a small law firm or State agency. Most paralegals make anywhere from $30,000 to $66,000 a year. State law agencies tend to pay the least while federal agencies tend to pay the most. With years of work experience a paralegal could be advanced to a senior paralegal manager, making over $100,000 a year being put in charge of paralegals on a lower level.

Paralegals perform a wide range of jobs. Paralegals working for a large law firm or government agency tend to be placed with more responsibility and jobs than a paralegal working for a small law firm, most paralegals are designated the same types of jobs and duties. Paralegals in many law firms take the place of secretaries, answering the phone, organizing and updating client files, hosting client interviews, and corresponding with courts and opposing parties. On a higher level, many paralegals are expected to do extensive legal research and writing. By this, I mean that paralegals are expected to perform accurate legal research and write legal documents and forms upon the lawyer’s request. All paralegal degree programs train for these expectations.

The paralegal work field is growing rapidly and well respected by the American Bar Association. Paralegals not only save time and effort on the lawyers part, but also make legal counsel for clients much more affordable. By performing duties for a clients case, the client is billed at around half the cost than if a lawyer performed the same work. This makes paralegals indispensable and client friendly. The paralegal field has one of the largest expected growth rates through year 2012. If you think that working in the law field is appealing, being a paralegal might be right for you.