This document is a comprehensive beginner's guide to the paralegal profession, created by Julian and Samantha. It covers the definition, duties, and types of paralegals, as well as training options, certification details, and salary information. The goal is to equip prospective paralegals with essential knowledge to navigate their career path effectively.

1. PARALEGAL 101
A beginner's guide to the paralegal
profession
By Julian & Samantha S
1

2. CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 3
SECTION ONE – THE BASICS
Overview 4
Defining Paralegal – What is a paralegal? 5-6
Duties and Responsabilities – What does a paralegal do? 7
Types of Paralegal – What are your options? 8-9
SECTION TWO – PARALEGAL TRAINING
Overview 10
Paralegal Certification – What your need to know 11
Paralegal Certification – Who to contact for your certification 12
Paralegal Programs – Choosing the right school 13-14
Paralegal Salaries – How much will I earn? 15-17
Paralegal Job Outlook – Will I be able to find work? 18
SECTION THREE - RESOURCES
Overview and Final Thoughts 19
General Paralegal Resources 20
Paralegal Blogs to Follow 21-23
2

3. INTRODUCTION
My name is Julian, and with my wife Samantha we have decided to publish
this free eBook as a guide for those who may be considering work as a
paralegal. Together we run a paralegal information site called
http://paralegaljobdescriptions.org which we started in September 2011.
Samantha has been working as a paralegal for about 8 years now, and I
work as a teacher and career counsellor. We noticed a lack of
downloadable resources for young paralegals, so we've put this short
guide together to help you along your way.
This guide is intended for those considering work as a paralegal or legal
assistant. Throughout the guide we'll aim to cover the basics of the
profession while also providing key information regarding training and the
next steps you may want to take in order to proceed in the industry.
Every effort has been made to ensure that all information included in this
guide is accurate at the time of writing. For your conveniance, a paralegal
resource section has been included, with educational links, as well as a
wide variety of paralegal blogs to keep yourself up to date on the latest
trends in the industry.
The guide is provided free of charge, please feel free to re-use, distribute,
print, and share this guide to all who may be interested.
3

4. SECTION 1 - THE BASICS
Overview
In this first section of the guide, we'll cover the basic questions surrounding
paralegal work for those who may not know what a paralegal or legal
assistant does. We'll begin by explaining exactly this, what a paralegal
does and how they do it. Following this up, we'll explain what tasks a
young paralegal might expect to undertake on a day to day basis.
Rounding everything up, we'll run through some different types of paralegal
areas of interest.
4

5. Defining a paralegal – What is a paralegal?
So, what exactly is a paralegal? There are many definitions which vary
slightly depending on the organization. Below are three definitions from
leading legal entities within the United States.
American Bar Association
"A legal assistant or paralegal is a person qualified by education, training
or work experience who is employed or retained by a lawyer, law office,
corporation, governmental agency or other entity who performs specifically
delegated substantive legal work for which a lawyer is responsible"
National Association of Legal Assistants
"Legal assistants, also known as paralegals, are a distinguishable group of
persons who assist attorneys in the delivery of legal services. Through
formal education, training and experience, legal assistants have
knowledge and expertise regarding the legal system and substantive and
procedural law which qualify them to do work of a legal nature under the
supervision of an attorney"
American Association of Paralegal Education
"Paralegals perform substantive and procedural legal work as authorized
by law, which work, in the absence of the paralegal, would be performed
by an attorney. Paralegals have knowledge of the law gained through
education, or education and work experience, which qualifies them to
perform legal work. Paralegals adhere to recognized ethical standards and
rules of professional responsibility"
5

6. Defining a paralegal (continued)
In plain English, a paralegal (or legal assistant) helps a lawyer perform his
or her duties by handling a variety of tasks that the lawyer may not have
time to do. A paralegal may not provide legal advice but is trained in
aspects of the law, and is permitted to conduct legal research, draft
documents among other tasks relating to aiding a lawyer or legal firm. The
terms paralegal and legal assistant are used interchangeably and for all
intents and purposes, refer to the same role.
Outside of the United States, terms such as legal aid or legal secretary
may be used, with slight variations in the nature of the work from country to
country.
6

7. Duties and Responsabilities – What does a paralegal do?
As some may have guessed, the duties and responsabilities of a paralegal
involve primarily aiding an attorney in his or her work. This can be done in
a variety of ways, and in a lot of cases, can vary from field to field. Those
who work in environmental law may not have the same responsabilities
than those working in litigation or criminal law. Complicating things further,
certain firms may require a paralegal to undertake additional training in
differing aspects of law, and as a result the duties may change over time.
This is one reason why paralegal work presents an ever changing set of
challenges to be overcome, and why every year thousands of men and
women decide to enter this exciting field. The best way to seek out precise
information regarding paralegal duties in a given field, is to undertake
paralegal training at one of the many institutions available both online, or
around the United States.
For your convenience, below is a sample list of duties that a paralegal
working in litigation may expect:
• Prepare subpoenas
• Prepare court exhibits
• Collect information on jurors
• Draft settlement documents for lawyer's approval
• Prepare notice of appeal
There are many different areas of law a paralegal can work in, below we'll
discuss some of these, hopefully giving you a bit of an idea of where you
might want to specialize. Some of these may also be higher paying than
others, which we'll discuss in Section 2.
7

8. Types of paralegal – What are your options?
It would probably be more accurate to refer to this section as different
areas of law studies, as the "type" of paralegal generally refers to the
particular area of law you decide to pursue. Having said that, there are
many different types of law, with a wide variety of lawyers and paralegals
working in each field. To help you along in getting an idea of what field you
may want to pursue, find below some common types of paralegal and a
brief description outlining what exactly these fields involve.
Coporate Law - May refer to dealing with disputes within a company,
handling litigation, as well as aiding company lawyers in filing for
bankrupcy, among other related tasks.
Criminal Law - Primarily refers to criminal cases, where a paralegal in this
field may expect to handle jury research, witness statements, appeal
notices, and case studies.
Environmental Law - Dealing primarily with issues of the environment, in
many cases, enforcing international treaties against individuals or
corporations who may be harming the environment.
International Law- This could involve enforcing international agreements
on a criminal or corporate level. Paralegal work related to this could involve
tasks such as reviewing and summarizing documents, finding precedent
cases, and a host of other tasks.
8

9. Types of Paralegal (continued)
More niche related studies include:
• Health Law
• Gaming Law
• Intellectual Property Law
• Music Law
• Patent Law
• Privacy Law
and many more
For a good idea of different areas of law and how it all fits together, please
refer to the list included here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_areas_of_law
It's important to note however that in most cases, firms will offer many
different options for studies with many firms offering in-house training if
needed. Another point to mention is in may cases, paralegals might find
themselves helping around the firm with common tasks such as filing or
legal research, which may not be specific to a particular field.
9

10. SECTION 2 - PARALEGAL TRAINING
Overview
For most who are seeking out work as a paralegal, the first step is to
consider where, and how to pursue training. Although it is was possible in
the past to "walk in" to a paralegal job without any formal training, this can
be quite rare as the profession seeks trained professionals to handle the
increasing demand in paralegal work. In this section, we'll begin by
covering some basics of paralegal training, involving the principal bodies of
paralegal certification as well as some common options of degrees and
certificates.
Following this up, we'll cover different ways you can acquire certification,
briefly touching on online training programs, running through some
advantages and disadvantages of both in-person and online training.
Finishing off this section, we'll discuss some average salaries of paralegals
around the country as well as the current job outlook for the paralegal
profession.
10

11. Paralegal certification – What you need to know
Probably the most important thing to note, is that at the time of writing
(June 2014) there is presently only one state that regulates paralegal
training in the United States (that state being California). As such, there no
governing body requiring any person to acquire certification in order to
become a paralegal. Although as mentioned, it is highly recommended to
pursue some form of paralegal training to increase your chances of finding
work.
An important distinction to make is the difference between a certificated
paralegal and a certified paralegal.
A certificated paralegal is one which has completed a course or training
certificate in paralegal studies, provided by an accredited training
institution. Most people become certificated before becoming certified, as
for most instututions it is a requirment to have successfully undertaken
paralegal training before sitting the exam to become certified. Having said
that, it is less important to be a certified paralegal than a certificated
paralegal, however it is also recommended for those wishing to find work
as a paralegal or legal assistant to pursue some form of paralegal
certification.
For more information on the difference between a certified and certificated
paralegal, please visit the official statement by the American bar
association here
(http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/paralegals/ls_
prlgs_diff_bet_paralegal_certificate_certification.authcheckdam.pdf)
11

12. Paralegal Certification – Who to contact for your
certification
Please find below a list of organizations which provide paralegal
certification, there are four main bodies which certify paralegals in the
United States, these are (in no particular order):
• The National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA, website
http://www.nala.org/)
• The National Association of Legal Secretaries (NALS, website
http://www.nals.org/)
• The American Alliance of Paralegals Inc (AAPI, website
http://www.aapipara.org/)
• The National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA, website
http://www.paralegals.org/)
The three bodies NALA, NALS and NFPA require an individual to pass a
written exam before being certified. AAPI offers paralegal degree
certification based on an individual’s experience and education.
12

13. Paralegal Programs – Choosing the right school
Undertaking a paralegal program is the best way to maximize your
chances to find work as a paralegal or legal assistant. According to the
American Bar Association, there are over 1,000 colleges, universities and
training institutions which can provided accredited training for paralegals.
The first thing to decide however, is the type of training you wish to pursue.
When it comes to education, one size does definitely not fit all, and some
people might find certain types of training more suited to their needs.
Below are different types of paralegal programs, with a short description on
the type of person they may be suited for.
Home study and online paralegal programs: This is becoming an
increasingly popular option as more and more institutions move their
efforts online to cater for an evolving world. The advantage of this sort of
study is obviously the flexibility, students are often able to set their own
hours and study at their own pace. Unfortunately the reality is that even
though some of these institutions are fully accredited by the American Bar
Association, some firms may not take online programs as seriously, and
may opt for candidates who have studied in person over online candidates.
Those wishing to study online may want to pursue paralegal certification
through the previously mentioned organizations in order to maximze their
chances of finding paralegal work.
13

14. Paralegal Programs (continued)
Associates degrees offered by two-year community and junior
colleges: Two year degrees are the most popular option for training in the
paralegal field. From an accredited institution, it provides all the training
requirements employers are looking for while also being a shorter and
more effcient study option for students. It may not be as flexible as home
study or online programs, although it provides a great oppertunity to
network with fellow students and teachers, increasing your chances of
finding paralegal work.
A similar option to the associate degree can be a certificate program
offered by business and proprietary schools, these generally range
from a few months to a year in length and can cover everything you need
to know in order to succeed as a paralegal.
Four-year college and university programs offering degrees in
paralegal studies: The four-year program is somewhat less common for
paralegals, however those who decide to receive a bachelor's degree from
a college or university can generally expect both a higher salary and
greater employement prospects. From here it is also possible to pursue
ever further education, resulting in a Master's degree in paralegal
studies, legal administration, or legal studies. The latter option is quite rare
in the industry and most employers are happy enough to hire those with a
bachelors degree.
Having said that, as a general rule when it comes to education; the more
you study and the harder you work, the higher chance you have in
succeeding. This is not to say that people have not begun work with no
formal training or with just an online degree, but as with anything in life,
you increase your chances of success with higher levels of education.
14

15. Paralegal Salaries – How much will I earn?
A hot-topic for most is obviously the salary that a paralegal or legal
assistant may receive. At the end of the day, this is what you're being paid
and it is only normal to want some information about this before you start
your career. According to the Beureau of Labor Statistics
(http://www.bls.gov) the average salary in 2012 for a paralegal in the
United States was $46,990 a year or $22.90 an hour.
It's important to note however that this is an average salary, and depending
on your training, experience, location, firm and field of study this may vary.
Experience
This may be the greatest factor in determining your wage, as is the case
with any profession. With more experience comes more pay, however most
of those reading this guide will likely be beginning to little to no experience
and coming directly out of a respective training program. The online salary
information site http://payscale.com states the average salary of a paralegal
with under one year's experience being between $25,367 and $45,249 a
year respectively, the main factor deciding the difference likely being the
location of the paralegal as well as the type of training undertaken.
On the other end of the spectrum, senior paralegals can earn a very
comfortable living, Payscale as well as the Bureau of Labor Statistics both
state top-earning paralegals can earn in the area of $90,000 a year.
15

16. Paralegal Salaries (continued)
Location
Location plays a very important role in deciding a paralegals salary. There
are several further factors in deciding why a particular location would
command a higher salary, generally speaking though, larger metropolitan
areas result in higher salaries for paralegals. According to the Bureau of
Labor Statistics the top 5 states by mean salary are as follows:
1. District of Columbia ($73,050)
2. California ($60,060)
3. Alaska ($60,020)
4. New Jersey ($58,830)
5. Oregon ($56,760)
As you might expect from this list, areas which have a higher cost of living
often result in a higher salary. Other factors might include the amount of
lawyers or law firms in a certain area or the total population of a given
area.
Field of Study and Employer
The Bureau of Labor Statistics has also discovered that the specialized
area of study as well as the type of employer is also a deciding factor in
getting an estimate of a paralegal salary. Larger firms tend to pay out
greater salaries than smaller practices, with technology industries being
the highest in terms of average paralegal pay. Below is the BLS list of the
top 5 average paralegal salaries by industry. It is important to note that
some of these industries are considerably smaller in size than the major
paralegal industries. Also included is the top 5 industries by levels of
employment (how many jobs are available).
16

17. Paralegal Salary (continued)
Top 5 average salaries by industry
1. Software Publishers ($77,140)
2. Professional and Commercial Equipment and Supplies Merchant
Wholesalers ($74,970)
3. Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing
($74,630)
4. Grantmaking and Giving Services ($73,090)
5. Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers ($72,780)
Top 5 industries by employment
1. Legal Services (202,930)
2. Local Government (OES Designation) [15,790]
3. Federal Executive Branch (OES Designation) [13,310]
4. State Government (OES Designation) [9,750]
5. Management of Companies and Enterprises [6,390]
All these things considered, it is never a good idea to base your career
choices purely on salary. Being a paralegal is rewarding work, and you
should always choose a field which interests you. In the long-run, you'll
have a more rewarding career and if you work hard, a nice salary as well!
17

18. Paralegal Job Outlook – Will I be able to find work?
Assuming proper training and the right mentality, the paralegal profession
remains a stable source of employment for thousands of young people
every year. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a growth rate of 17%
from the period of 2012 to 2022, which is higher than the average across
all professions.
One reason for this is the global growth of the legal industry as a whole,
which as a result, sparks a direct growth in the support mechanism which
allows the industry to continue to operate efficiently. Currently, there are
approximately 277,000 paralegal and legal assistants employed in the
United States and this is projected to rise to 323,300 by 2022.
Unlike some industries, there doesn't appear to be a need to worry about
stability in the legal industry, with every year there comes a need for more
and more well trained legal assistants to help along the process in a
variety of sectors. Many companies are beginning to handle their own legal
work, with an ever growing chance of finding work outside of a law firm and
within a private company unrelated to law.
As always, there will be competition when finding work, but just be sure to
maximize your chances by working hard and taking the right steps to
ensure you will be successful in your paralegal career.
18

19. SECTION 3 – RESOURCES
Overview and Final Thoughts
The best strategy when making a decision on your future career is to do
your proper research and to never rely on any single peice of information.
To help you along in choosing whether being a paralegal is something you
might want to pursue, we have compiled a list of useful resources relating
to the paralegal industry as well as a list of hand-picked blogs by
paralegals which will give you a good idea of what life is like “in the
trenches”.
This will be the last section of this eBook so we would like to thank you all
for reading through it and sincerely hope you have managed to take
something useful out of it. Paralegal work can be extemely rewarding and
lead to a long and fulfulling career. Certain cases can really make a
difference in people's lives, and with the wide range of fields to work in, the
options are always open to expand in to new and exciting areas of law.
Please feel free to check out our site (http://paralegaljobdescriptions.org)
as we intend to be updating it shortly with more articles to help people find
work as a paralegal as well as some tips and tricks to get the most out of
your career. Also have a look at some of the blogs in the section below,
there are some very talented bloggers and a wealth of information to be
gained by having a read through their posts.
Thanks for reading and best of luck with your future career!
Julian & Sam
19

20. Resources – Information
General
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paralegal (Wikipedia)
http://www.bls.gov/ooh/legal/paralegals-and-legal-assistants.htm (Bureau
of Labor Statistics
http://legalcareers.about.com/od/careerprofiles/p/Paralegals.htm
(About.com)
Areas of legal study
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_areas_of_law (Wikpedia)
http://brown.edu/academics/college/advising/law-school/fields-law/fields-
law (Brown University)
Salary Information
http://www.bls.gov/ooh/legal/paralegals-and-legal-assistants.htm#tab-5
(Bureau of Labor Statistics
http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Paralegal/Salary
(Payscale.com)
20

21. Paralegal blogs to follow
The Estrin Report
http://estrinlegaled.typepad.com/
The Paralegal
http://theparalegal.wordpress.com/
The Paralegal Society
http://theparalegalsociety.wordpress.com/
The California Litigator
http://www.thecalifornialitigator.com/california-litigator/
The Paralegal Mentor
http://www.paralegalmentorblog.com/
Legally Blog
http://samihartsfield.wordpress.com/
Paralegal Pie
http://kimwalker.typepad.com/paralegalpie/
Verbal Insanity
http://verbalinsanity.com/
Pamela The Paralegal
http://pamelatheparalegal.com/
21

22. Paralegal blogs to follow (continued)
Paralegal Blaw Blaw Blaw
http://lorijpaul.com/
Paralegal Hell
http://paralegalhell.com/
Momalegal
http://mom2tomtom.wordpress.com/
Paralegelese
http://para-mel.blogspot.nl/
Digital Paralegal Services
http://www.digitalparalegalservices.com/blog/
The Empowered Paralegal
http://theempoweredparalegal.com/
A Paralegal's Life
http://aparalegalslife.blogspot.nl/
Paralegal Knowledge Institute
http://www.paralegalknowledge.com/
Parasec
http://parasec.wordpress.com/
22

23. Paralegal blogs to follow (continued)
Paralegal 411
http://www.paralegal411.org/
Sonoma Freelance
http://sonomafreelance.blogspot.nl/
Paralegal Today
http://paralegaltoday.com/
New York Paralegal Blog
http://www.newyorkparalegalblog.com/
Superlegal Fun
http://superlegalfun.blogspot.nl/
Practical Paralegalism
http://www.practicalparalegalism.com/
Criminal Justice Degree Schools
http://www.criminaljusticedegreeschools.com/
23