It is not easy to choose a career that is suitable or relevant to your major today. Some people dream of becoming leaders, politicians and famous stars. There are others who are interested in becoming poets, writers and novelists while most of us generally have a desire of becoming engineers, doctors, and scientists of great repute. Have you ever heard about Paralegal? I am sure that many people know about this word, but how do you really know about this job? According to the American Bar Association (ABA), Paralegal is a person who is qualified by education, training, and work experience is employed by a lawyer, law office, and government agency and performs specifically delegated substantive legal work for which a lawyer is responsible. …show more content…
In this legal career, certain characteristics and particular skills are more likely to be successful than others. If you are considering a job as a paralegal, make sure that you match the bill of time you apply. There are some of the most important skills paralegal students who want an excellent career should develop such as Prioritizing skills, critical thinking, communication, organization, writing, researching, computer skills, and teamwork. With the prioritizing skills, The multitask ability is a skill paralegals must have and this makes the priority very important. Paralegals often have a lot of works that require their attention simultaneously and many clients need a painting course for their needs. Predicting all the roadblocks and problems that may arise is a skill that helps legal assistants develop throughout their career. Paralegals also need to add instincts and common sense for their assets to succeed in their careers. Whether you interview clients, contact people for research, write reports for witnesses, or schedule court appointments, most of the duties of an ambassador include talking and communicating. with others. You are a contact person, you are the right hand of the
A growing legal profession is the Paralegal profession. Paralegals assist attorneys prepare for their hearings, trials, motions and legal meetings. Yet, their exact duties may differ depending on the size of the firm and the range of law in which the paralegal functions or how that particular office functions. In lesser firms, paralegals duties differ a great deal more. In accumulation to reviewing and documents, paralegals can complete written reports that help Attorneys determine how to best handle their cases. Skilled paralegals are allowed to take on greater roles and responsibilities that may require overseeing group projects or assigning work to other staff or paralegals. Paralegals often work in groups with other paralegals, attorneys
Paralegals can lead to a career path. Since they lead attorneys to trials, they mainly know the work of an attorney. So if a paralegal want to go to law school and be an attorney or lawyers, they already will know the work and what
Criminal law paralegals provide assistance to defense attorneys and prosecutors. Their duties include drafting documents, doing research, interviewing witnesses, putting together discovery information, communicating with other parties, and assisting attorneys when they are in
Paralegals are employed in a wide variety of legal settings and play an ever-increasing role in the delivery of affordable and efficient legal services. However, regulation of paralegals has been non-existent or inconsistent, though the topic continues to be a significant issue. Across the country, paralegals advocate bar associations, state legislatures and courts to consider regulatory programs that go beyond merely defining the term "Paralegal." Federally required licensing of paralegals would benefit future growth and development of the career field and address the controversial issues surrounding it.
The role a paralegal has in a law firm is a vital. These professionals are highly valued for the abilities they contribute in the area of knowing the law, legal research and how it applies to a client’s case. Furthermore, paralegals also as assist their Attorneys on a variety of tasks pertaining to a law related matters. Regardless, no matter how knowledgeable the paralegal may be; they are always required to work under the direct supervision of an attorney. There are very little exceptions for paralegals to work in the law field, unsupervised. Even in these exceptions, It is still possible for a professional paralegal, under the supervision of an attorney or not, to still commit UPL (California Legislative Information Business and Professions Code).
Paralegals or legal assistants are qualified by education, training or work experience, but are not required by any state to be licensed. Although, legal assistants may get become certified through such organization as NALA or some state bar associations. Paralegals are a valuable asset to an attorney, but it is important for a paralegal or legal assistant to adhere to the standards of legal ethics and proper conduct, one of which, they must never give legal advice. A paralegal or legal assistant may assist an attorney, but the attorney is ultimately responsible, therefore the paralegal should work under the supervision of said attorney. Currently, there are no absolute requirements for a person to be a paralegal, but with most
A paralegal is a person who assists an attorney in various aspects. As a paralegal, my mom provides paralegal support to multiple attorneys in a fast-paced work environment; managing high volumes of document production; managing attorney deadlines and ensuring compliance with various court deadlines; drafting material pleadings motions, and identifying documents responsive to discovery requests; managing and maintaining privilege logs, drafting subpoenas and correspondence. Assisting attorneys with pre and post trial matters, arbitration, depositions and mediation
I am not one of those individuals who realized that a career in the legal field would be their lifelong dream from the age of six or even twelve, or to be honest, after graduating high school. I have been aimless for a majority of my life, and it shows. I chose to major in biotechnology, then after a few semesters, decided to double major in literature. I then went on to become president of an academic society focused on International studies. It was not until I took the course Law and Business in my Sophomore year with Professor Jisoo Lee that I believed I could be nothing else but a lawyer. I was enthralled by what others found tedious and boring, spending every available minute reading case files and figuring out ways to, as my professor
It is a task in itself for one, such as myself, to allow another to fully grasp the principle of why I want to become a paralegal, let alone explain it within three pages without simply stating, “I desire to use the set of skills and passion that I possess in order to help others while working within this specific field of law.” Nevertheless, the reality of the fact is that it is purely the essence and core of why I have the drive and determination to work towards becoming a paralegal.
To understand what a paralegal does we must first understand what the job of a lawyer entails. Black’s Law Dictionary defines a lawyer as “a person learned in the law; as an attorney,
I quickly found that this was not the field for me. I did not have the patience for it and hated every day of it. I then took a job as a Patient Access Representative in an emergency room. I loved the hospital environment and the fast pace of the job but the pay was not something I could live with for the long term. I continued to apply for criminal justice positions and continued to get rejection letters. I then started hearing about Paralegal studies being a lucrative field. So I looked into obtaining an A.S. degree in Paralegal Studies. The program was not very long and I decided to give it a try. Once again I had run into the same road block. This time when I applied for open positions, I was told that law firms were looking for someone with a Paralegal certificate and experience. Now I was really dumbfounded. I just could not imagine that attorneys would be more interested in hiring someone with a certificate instead of a degree. I guess I could have gotten a certificate but at that point I was very hesitant about putting any more time or money into that venture.
Throughout my high school career I focused on law. Law was not my passion but with a family full of lawyers it is what I
Becoming a paralegal is an occupation I’m currently interested in, and will be the career that I’ll achieve best in. To pursue as a paralegal, I will be attending Georgia State University and hold a bachelor in business administration within the five years. "Most" companies require you either be a certified paralegal, or hold a bachelor’s degree in business administration, finance, management, etc. or have at least 2 years of experience in legal experience. Afterwords, I would complete (American Bar Association) being approved as a paralegal training (associates degree in paralegal studies) which the job environment and some job duties of a corporate paralegal differs from a paralegal at a law
The purpose of this memorandum is to go into detail about the legal career path of being a lawyer. Within this memo, you will find information regarding the preparation for a career as a lawyer, such as the necessary degrees and skills, as well as information on the general outlook for this job, such as expect salary, and where most of the jobs in this field are located. Finally, the memorandum will discuss how occupational research for being an attorney helped tailor my resume and cover letter to specific job postings in the field.
Law is of fundamental importance to our country, as well as shaping our modern evolving society. I felt that doing a Law degree can be both satisfying and help society in the future by