What Does A Paralegal Do?

To people who want to know what does a paralegal do, a paralegal is a legal professional who basically carries out the administrative and transactional duties of a lawyer. In short, the lawyer is the one who approaches the bench, but the one who does all the research and organizing work behind the curtains is the paralegal. In the olden days, the responsibility of a paralegal professional was not much. However, things have changed and paralegal professionals are continuously taking over more responsibilities and duties.

Paralegals are not just restricted to the legal firms; they can be found in several other industries. Most of these paralegal professionals are employed in law firms, corporate departments, government offices, etc. In a legal firm, the paralegal would be working in several different aspects of law which include litigation, corporate law, personal injury, intellectual property, criminal law, immigration, real estate, etc. The work of a paralegal would become even more specialized as these different laws become complexed.

The job description of a paralegal also differs with organizations. There are basically two types of paralegals: corporate and litigation. The nature of work for these professionals is similar but there is a difference in scope. A corporate paralegal usually deals with documents relating to business transactions, mergers and acquisitions, etc. A litigation paralegal is more into lawsuits and offences, etc. The responsible of a corporate legal is to be aware of the several changes in norms and regulations brought about by the government and ensuring that the firm he works for comply with those requirements.

The paralegals who are employed in the government sector have different sets of duties and it is primarily depended upon the kind of government office they work for. Paralegals who work in projects based on community service are primarily into helping the aged, poor, and several others who need but cannot afford legal assistance.

The work environment for a paralegal is pretty much routine, and this is the case when the paralegal is new to the job. Over a period of time as these professionals start gaining some experience, their scope of work expands and they are handed with additional tasks. Most of the paralegals carry out their work in an office and libraries. In some cases for gathering additional information, they could be travelling.

As far as education of a paralegal is concerned, the basis dedicated degree is an associate degree, which could be earned at several community colleges. Those individuals who have a degree in another field can take a certificate course in paralegal studies and start working as a paralegal professional. The number of colleges and universities that offer undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in paralegal studies are few. This is exactly the reason why most people learn about the field while on their job. The bachelor’s and master programs in paralegal combine several other subjects within the course.

There is an increase in the demand for paralegals and this is precisely because there are more people who are seeking professional legal services. The salaries of paralegals vary considerably and it primarily depends on the experience levels of the professional, his work location, education, training, etc. The full-time annual salary of a paralegal professional can be anywhere between $40,000 and $70,000. Along with the salary, there are several paralegals that get bonuses and incentives for extending their work hours or exhibiting exceptional work.