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Paralegal
A Paralegal is someone who does legal work but who is not a solicitor or barrister. A Paralegal may work in a wide variety of organisations in various paralegal positions.
A paralegal will work in various legal environments such as law firms, a paralegal usually specialise in an area of legal practice such as a paralegal probate, paralegal conveyancer or civil litigation paralegal. A paralegal can also work in the civil and criminal justice court systems. A paralegal may also be found in the police forces and other enforcement bodies. Some of the paralegal positions involve contact with the public.
Paralegal caseworkers also work for a wide variety of public bodies and they may apply the law, administer it or advise on it. A paralegal may be found within the commercial and industry world.
A paralegal salary can range from £16,000 to £25,000 a year.
They would normally work a 37 hour week, longer hours are common in senior paralegal positions. If a paralegal is doing police representation work, then they may be on call and occasionally a paralegal may be required to work weekends.
A paralegal should be discreet, have patience and understanding and pay attention to detail. Key skills are the ability to communicate with clients, keep up to date with the law, absorb and analyse large amounts of information. A paralegal will have good written English, be able to work under pressure and must have the ability to work to deadlines.
The best paralegals have a mixture of experience gained whilst working and relevant educational paralegal qualifications. Training to become a paralegal is mainly on the job under the supervision of experienced paralegal colleagues. Many employers will encourage their paralegal staff to take relevant courses that involve formal paralegal training.
Jobs of this type currently available
- Category:
- Legal
- Published:
- 16 Apr 08
- Based in:
- Edinburgh
- Salary:
- £30,000 - £35,000
