What kind of hours do legal secretaries work?
Asked by Star Seeker
I am considering becoming a legal secretary. (I currently work as a magazine editor.) Before I transition into legal secretarial work, I want to get an idea of the hours I should expect. Does it depend on the firm's specialty, number of attorneys in general and/or number of attorneys I would support? Are secretaries' hours considered "billable"?

Best Answer:
The hours depend on the attorney you work for. If you a are pool secretary then it depends on the flow of work for that particular firm. Your hours are billable but to the attorney. You will be paid a salary or hourly wage.

When you interview for a job, they will tell you what your hours will be. You should then ask about Overtime and the Rate paid for Overtime. Or, if you don't want to work any Overtime, you must tell them at the time of the Interview.
Answered by fatsausage

When I was a legal secretary, I would work between 50-60 hours a week! I worked for a two-person lawfirm and I had an assistant. However, I had to do almost everything in the office. It's hard work. No, secretarial work is not billable to the client. Only attorneys charge their time.
Answered by Saiyuki_Anyone?

When I was a legal secretary (I'm a paralegal now), I worked 40 hours a week, except during trial, which went upwards to 50-60. It is going to depend on what the firm does. If you do estate planning, for instance, your chances of ever seeing the inside of a courtroom are slim to none. If you work in a personal injury firm, the opposite is true. If you are efficient and get your work done, you won't be stuck working late, but sometimes you'll end up with more work than hours in the day. It just depends. Hours are not billable for secretaries.
Answered by perfectvelvet