Paralegals and Legal Assistants

What Paralegals and Legal Assistants Do

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

Career Outlook

National employment outlook, 2024–2034.

Related work experience

None

On-the-job training

None

Self-employed

1.4%

Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.

Key Knowledge Areas

Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.

• Law and Governmentimportance 4.8/5
• English Languageimportance 4.4/5
• Administrativeimportance 4.2/5
• Computers and Electronicsimportance 3.9/5
• Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 3.6/5
• Administration and Managementimportance 3.3/5
• Mathematicsimportance 2.6/5
• Education and Trainingimportance 2.6/5

Work Environment

What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.

• E-Mail5.0/5
• Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.9/5
• Importance of Being Exact or Accurate4.8/5
• Spend Time Sitting4.8/5
• Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.7/5
• Telephone Conversations4.5/5

Related Careers

• Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants
• Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers
• Court Reporters and Simultaneous Captioners
• Court, Municipal, and License Clerks
• Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive
• Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants
• Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs
• Correspondence Clerks

Careers With Similar Skills

Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.

• Customer Service Representatives99% skill match
• Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs98% skill match
• Correspondence Clerks98% skill match
• New Accounts Clerks98% skill match
• School Psychologists98% skill match
• Writers and Authors97% skill match
• Insurance Claims and Policy Processing Clerks97% skill match
• Credit Counselors97% skill match

Transferable Skills

Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.

• Social Perceptivenessimportance 3.0/5
• Service Orientationimportance 3.0/5
• Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.0/5
• Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 3.0/5
• Time Managementimportance 3.0/5
• Coordinationimportance 2.9/5
• Persuasionimportance 2.8/5
• Negotiationimportance 2.8/5

Software & Technologies

Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.

Work Style

Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.

• Attention to Detail
• Dependability
• Integrity
• Cautiousness
• Intellectual Curiosity
• Cooperation
• Perseverance

Career Interests

This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.

• ConventionalHigh
• InvestigativeHigh
• EnterprisingMedium
• SocialMedium
• ArtisticLow
• RealisticLow

Where This Career Is Most Concentrated

Metro areas where paralegals and legal assistants make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).

1. 1Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL2.50× national avg
2. 2Parkersburg-Vienna, WV2.17× national avg
3. 3Cheyenne, WY2.05× national avg
4. 4Montgomery, AL1.89× national avg
5. 5New Orleans-Metairie, LA1.88× national avg

Possible Career Moves

A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.

• Title Examiners, Abstractors, and SearchersLateral Move
• Eligibility Interviewers, Government ProgramsCareer Change
• Correspondence ClerksCareer Change
• Human Resources Assistants, Except Payroll and TimekeepingCareer Change

See the full career path from Paralegals and Legal Assistants →

Related Education Programs

Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.