Paralegal job description

Nov 08, 2021

Written By Robert Greene

Paralegal roles are increasingly seen as low-cost alternatives to other legal service providers. Here, we’ll look at what a paralegal is, what work a paralegal does, and how to qualify as a paralegal.

What is a paralegal?

A paralegal is a person who does legal work but is not regulated by the Legal Services Act 2007. There are an estimated 200,000 paralegals in England and Wales, of which 70,000 work in law firms.

The rest work for a variety of different employers, including the government, companies, charities, and paralegal firms. There are an estimated 6,000 paralegal law firms.

What does a paralegal do?

Paralegals, like solicitors, often specialise in an area of law, and they carry out a range of legal and non-legal work. This includes administrative tasks, proofreading and drafting documents, conducting legal research and analysing legal data, preparing research and briefing notes for solicitors as well as drafting articles for internal and external stakeholders.

Paralegals could be attending small claims courts, court inquests, and tribunals on clients’ behalf, conducting and transcribing client interviews, drafting witness statements, compiling bundles (“bundling”), filing documents at court and writing case reports and drafting instructions to counsel.

Despite this huge range of potential duties, there are certain functions, known as “reserved legal activities”, which paralegals cannot perform:

Right of audience: Paralegals do not have the right to appear before the court and address the court on behalf of their client.

Conduct litigation: Paralegals do not have the right to commence legal proceedings or to prosecute or defend legal proceedings on behalf of their clients in court.

Reserved instrument activities: Paralegals cannot engage in conveyancing land.

Probate activities: Paralegals cannot prepare probate papers.

Notarial activities: Paralegals cannot carry out certain functions of notaries under the Public Notaries Act 1801.

Administration of oaths: Paralegals cannot administer oaths, which is the prerogative of a commissioner for oaths.

Paralegal qualifications

The paralegal profession is currently unregulated, which means that there are no formal qualifications required to become a paralegal.

However, certain employers may require aspiring paralegals to have an academic qualification, and it’s common for candidates to be expected to have a law degree, the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL), or the Legal Practice Course (LPC).

There are paralegal courses which candidates can also complete, such as those offered by the Institute of Paralegals (IOP) and the National Association of Licensed Paralegals (NALP). Members of the IOP, for example, can apply for a Paralegal Practising Certificate, which recognises Professional Paralegal Practitioners.

Aspiring paralegals can also do a paralegal Advanced Apprenticeship, which involves studying part-time while working for a proper wage.

Depending on the role, employers might also require candidates to have previous relevant experience of six months to one year, particularly for large law firms or paralegal specialist roles.

Paralegal skills

Given the range of tasks a paralegal might be expected to undertake, they require a broad skill set. Essential skills include:

Written and oral communication skills

IT skills, including proficiency in Microsoft Office

Time management skills

Project management skills

Attention to detail

Legal research skills, including an understanding of legal databases such as Westlaw, Lexis-Nexis and Law Trove

Administrative skills, including filing, typing, and billing

Teamwork skills

Paralegal salary

The salary expectations of a paralegal depend on the size and location of the firm, the candidate’s years of experience, the level of responsibility involved, and the practice area.

According to the NALP’s estimates, paralegals can expect to earn the following:

Junior paralegal: £14,000-£22,000

Law graduate paralegal: £21,000-£22,000

Senior paralegal: £30,000-£40,000

US law firms and London-based firms tend to offer higher salaries, for example the estimates for a London paralegal wage are:

Junior paralegal: £22,000-£24,000

Law graduate paralegal: £28,000-£30,000

Senior paralegal: £35,000-£50,000

According to IOP, experienced paralegal can earn as much as £70,000 per year. However, this is rare.

Paralegal working hours

Paralegals can be expected to be contracted to work a 9-5 working week. However, the actual work expected on a given week will ebb and flow with the demands of the jobs., and there will be busier and quieter periods.

Career progression

Some paralegals may receive formal training as part of their role, whilst others may learn via less structured methods like work shadowing and learning on the job.

Some paralegal roles can be a stepping stone to a training contract; those who excel may be invited to interview for a training contract at the firm or could automatically be offered one after completing a specified period of work at the firm as a paralegal.

With the introduction of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) in September 2021, paralegal roles are likely to become increasingly sought after. That is because the SQE introduces a new route to qualification as a solicitor.

Instead of completing a two-year training contract, aspiring solicitors must complete two years qualifying work experience (QWE) and two exams, SQE1 and SQE2. The QWE can be made up of any four legal work experiences, including paralegal roles, which are signed off by a solicitor or compliance officer for legal practice (COLP).

Paralegal roles will, therefore, provide a direct route to qualifying as a solicitor in England and Wales.

What can I do with a Law Degree?