|
Whether you're thinking of going into the paralegal profession as a first career, or you'd like to change careers and become a paralegal because you have great transferable skills, you should know some important facts about the paralegal profession. Career Paralegal Education |  | While some paralegals find jobs without formal paralegal education, most people know that getting a paralegal degree or a paralegal certificate greatly enhances their chances of finding a job. Others find that getting a higher-level paralegal degree increases their chances of promotion. The National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA) found that a majority of member paralegals had either an associate's degree (36 percent) or a bachelor's degree (42 percent), and a paralegal certificate. | Where Paralegals Work According to a 2008 NALA survey, private law firms employed 64 percent of career paralegals, corporations employed 18 percent, and the public sector and government employed eight percent.  Paralegal Specialty Areas Paralegals may have a legal specialty because they are passionate about that area of law or because it was the focus of their first paralegal job. The following table shows the percentage of paralegals working in each specialty area. (The total adds up to more than 100 percent because paralegals often work in more than one specialty.) Civil Litigation:
Corporate:
Contracts:
Real Estate:
Personal Injury:
Government:
Employment/Labor Law:
Insurance:
Trusts & Estates:
Probate:
Family Law:
Banking/Finance:
Bankruptcy:
Product Liability: | 51%
32%
29%
27%
26%
23%
20%
20%
19%
19%
15%
14%
14%
13% | | Criminal:
Workers Compensation:
Intellectual Property:
Mergers and Acquisitions:
Employee Benefits:
Mass Tort Litigation:
Elder Law:
Environmental Law:
Tax:
Securities/Antitrust:
Immigration:
Legislative Lobbying:
Admiralty/Maritime:
Entertainment: | 13%
13%
13%
11%
11%
10%
9%
9%
9%
9%
8%
6%
5%
5% | Career Paralegal Job Duties There are three typical tasks that paralegals perform under appropriate lawyer supervision: factual investigation, legal research and the preparation of legal documents. To give you greater insight into the types of work most common in a paralegal career, the 2008 NALA survey lists the most common paralegal duties. (The total adds up to more than 100 percent because paralegals normally perform more than one task.) Assist at trial:
Law library maintenance:
Prepare and attend closings:
Deposition summaries:
Personnel management:
Prepare/attend depositions:
Cite checking:
Train employees:
Client or Witness interviews:
Investigation:
| 79%
76%
64%
59%
53%
49%
49%
48%
39%
23% | | Court filings:
Assist with client contact:
Fact checking:
Document analysis/summary:
Calendaring deadlines:
Draft pleadings, etc.:
General factual research:
Case management:
Draft correspondence:
| 22%
16%
14%
14%
12%
12%
11%
5%
5% | Career Paralegal Salary Most paralegals work in litigation and for law firms, so they are paid for their billable hours, like lawyers. The billable hours worked do not add up to the salary you receive. Rather, as a general rule of thumb, the person billing the hours receives one third of their hourly rate, another third pays for company overhead and is invested back into the firm, and the last third is paid to the firm partners. The chart below shows that the vast majority of paralegals bill between $71 to more than $90 per hour. Paralegal Billing Rates More than $90 per hour:
$86 – $90 per hour:
$81 – $85 per hour:
$76 – $80 per hour:
$71 – $75 per hour: | | 53%
7%
5%
5%
13% | Career paralegals are a well paid group. While their average total compensation is $50,953 (with an average salary of $48,211 and an average bonus of $2,742), many make much more. Salaries depend on education, training, experience, the type and size of employer, and geographic location. In general, paralegals who work for large law firms in metropolitan areas earn more than others, with the top 10 percent earning more than $67,540. Many people are becoming paralegals, either as a first or a second career. If you think a paralegal career is a good fit for you, seek out the best paralegal education, review paralegal certification requirements, and join the 238,000 other career paralegals who already work in this exciting and challenging field. Sources: BLS, National Association of Legal Assistants Criminal Justice Home
Paralegal Articles & Resources | Find Criminal Justice Schools |
