Occupation Profile

Paralegals and Legal Assistants*

(SOC Code : 23-2011)

in California

Assist lawyers by researching legal precedent, investigating facts, or preparing legal documents. Conduct research to support a legal proceeding, to formulate a defense, or to initiate legal action.

Employers are usually looking for candidates with a Associate degree .

View a Career Video for this occupation from America's Career InfoNet (requires Windows Media Player)

Occupational Wages

[Top]

Area	Year	Period	Hourly Mean	Hourly by Percentile
				25th	Median	75th
California	2012	1st Qtr	$28.75	$20.30	$27.80	$35.57

View Wages for All Areas About Wages

Occupational Projections of Employment (also called "Outlook" or "Demand")

[Top]

Area	Estimated Year-Projected Year	Employment		Employment Change		Annual Avg Openings
		Estimated	Projected	Number	Percent
California	2010 - 2020	26,800	32,200	5,400	20.1	920

View Projections for All Areas About Projections

Job Openings from JobCentral National Labor Exchange

[Top]

Enter a Zip Code Find a Zip code in California

Within miles of Zip Code.

Industries Employing This Occupation (click on Industry Title to View Employers List)

[Top]

Industry Title

Number of Employers in State of California

Percent of Total
Employment for Occupation in State of California

Legal Services

57,499

69.8%

Management of Companies and Enterprises

914

1.9%

Employment Services

6,297

1.3%

Insurance Carriers

4,763

1.1%

About Staffing Patterns

Training Programs (click on title for more information)

[Top]

Program Title

Legal Assistant/Paralegal

About Training & Apprenticeships

About This Occupation (from O*NET - The Occupation Information Network)

[Top]

Top Tasks (Specific duties and responsibilities of this job.)

Prepare affidavits or other documents, such as legal correspondence, and organize and maintain documents in paper or electronic filing system.

Prepare for trial by performing tasks such as organizing exhibits.

Prepare legal documents, including briefs, pleadings, appeals, wills, contracts, and real estate closing statements.

Meet with clients and other professionals to discuss details of case.

File pleadings with court clerk.

Gather and analyze research data, such as statutes, decisions, and legal articles, codes, and documents.

Call upon witnesses to testify at hearing.

Investigate facts and law of cases and search pertinent sources, such as public records, to determine causes of action and to prepare cases.

Direct and coordinate law office activity, including delivery of subpoenas.

Keep and monitor legal volumes to ensure that law library is up-to-date.

More Tasks for Paralegals and Legal Assistants

Top Skills used in this Job

Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Time Management - Managing one`s own time and the time of others.

Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others` actions.

Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

More Skills for Paralegals and Legal Assistants

Top Abilities (Attributes of the person that influence performance in this job.)

Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

More Abilities for Paralegals and Legal Assistants

Top Work Values (Aspects of this job that create satisfaction.)

Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment.

Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

More Work Values for Paralegals and Legal Assistants

Top Interests (The types of activities someone in this job would like.)

Conventional - Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Investigative - Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

More Interests for Paralegals and Legal Assistants

Alternate Titles

Legal Investigators; Judicial Assistants; Probate Paralegals; Real Estate Paralegals; Law Clerks; Court Clerks; and Attorney Assistants.