Paralegals: The Alternative Legal Career

What is a Paralegal?

Paralegals, also known within the legal community as legal assistants, have played a crucial role in the legal field since the late 1960's. Firms and individual lawyers were seeking ways to improve their interaction with clients while keeping down the actual overall cost of legal services. And thus, the concept of the paralegal was born.

What is the difference between a paralegal and a legal assistant? Many would argue of the dramatic status and educational differences between the two but, basically, the two terms describe the same profession. The paralegal is, in essence, an attorney's or a law firm's legal assistant. They carry out simple tasks related to legal processes that do not necessarily require that a lawyer complete.

In the US, the practice of law is regulated according to the laws and policies of each state. These laws vary greatly from state to state, but all fifty of the states prohibit paralegals from actually practicing law.

This basically means that a paralegal is unable to provide any type of legal counsel- including advice, representation in a court of law, or acceptance or the refusal of a case-each of which are considered one way or another as practicing law.

A paralegal can perform functions such as:
·General client contact such as interviews, updates, and important messages relating to their case.
·Research including legal documents, databases, interviews, and investigations
·Draft legal documents and pleadings
·Document depositions and summarize interrogations and testimony for further use in court or court-related documents.

Is the Paralegal Field a Promising Career Choice?