Individuals who wish to pursue a career within the legal system but don’t wish to spend the time or money it takes to attend and complete law school may consider a career as a legal assistant, also known as a paralegal.

Though paralegals are not permitted to dispense legal advice, they do indeed play an important role in the delivery of legal services.  A legal assistant is employed by a lawyer, law office or corporation to perform specifically delegated legal work.

The idea of paralegals really took off in the 1960s at a time when law offices looked for ways to become more cost effective.  Rather than hiring additional lawyers, they created the “legal assistant”, a trained individual who would be able to do so-called legal legwork for the community of attorneys and law offices as it continued to grow and more people turned to them to solve difficult matters.

In order to become a legal assistant, an individual must attend an accredited paralegal training program.  Currently, hundreds of these programs exist at such institutions as four-year universities and colleges, community colleges, and business schools. 

Programs range from 2-year courses of study where students earn approximately 60-70 credits and an Associate’s Degree to 4-year degrees where paralegal education is the major course of study.  A few institutions even boast graduate/master’s degree programs in this area of concentration, perhaps combining legal administration with paralegal studies.  Entrance requirements for these programs are much the same as for any other higher education course of study.

Should you choose to become a legal assistant, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics notes that the outlook for securing a job is excellent.  They project that this field will grow approximately 33% in the first 10 years of the new millennium, with many new jobs opening not only in private law offices but also at insurance companies, title companies, banks, real estate offices, and in the legal departments of companies both large and small.