What does a legal assistant exactly do?
Asked by i_love_u_123
I am studying to be a legal assistant and I know the general info about what it consists of. But i would like to know more in detail what the daily tasks of a legal assistant are and other info such as the average pay and the working hours. Please inform me, especially if you are in this field of work and you can tell me from experience. Thank You!

Best Answer:
I am sorry,.....but poster "Kapn" is correct. The field of Law is rapidly shrinking. This is not a good vocational field to invest time and/or money into. If you don't believe us, I suggest you just do a search here on Yahoo answers to get other posters opinions on the current status of the field of Law. The two positions are not exactly the same - a Legal Assistant will usually have to do more secretarial duties than a Paralegal. Generally, a Legal Assistant has gotton the position they have by experience. Generally a Paralegal has attained the position they have by education. Usually. If you can change your major now, do so. Consider and look into the vocational field of healthcare. I talked to a career counselor from Jobs and Family Services, and he says that future job availability is in healthcare. The field of Law is shrinking........rapidly. You'll find out when you can't find a job in the field of Law.
life been there - done that have actually worked in the field of Law for twelve years am an employee of a law school, so I KNOW and see (too much?!?) don't have time to watch those TV law shows - the couple that I did watch weren't realistic, at all TV glamorizes the field of Law - do your research first - the field of Law is actually a lot of paperwork wish someone would have warned ME sooner so now I TRY to warn and help others (that will listen and not get defensive) I am simply tired of watching students getting ripped off by law schools
Answered by mailaccount63

I'm actually in the paralegal program, but they are both the same. I hope you are prepared mentally because it's a lot of research and workloads. You do everything for the lawyer and you might know more than him. Check this info out below: Most entrants have an associate degree in paralegal studies, or a bachelor’s degree coupled with a certificate in paralegal studies. About 7 out of 10 work for law firms; others work for corporate legal departments and government agencies. Employment is projected to grow much faster than average, as employers try to reduce costs by hiring paralegals to perform tasks once done by lawyers. Competition for jobs should continue; experienced, formally trained paralegals should have the best employment opportunities. Nature of the Work [About this section] Back to Top While lawyers assume ultimate responsibility for legal work, they often delegate many of their tasks to paralegals. In fact, paralegals—also called legal assistants—are continuing to assume a growing range of tasks in legal offices and perform many of the same tasks as lawyers. Nevertheless, they are explicitly prohibited from carrying out duties considered to be the practice of law, such as setting legal fees, giving legal advice, and presenting cases in court. One of a paralegal’s most important tasks is helping lawyers prepare for closings, hearings, trials, and corporate meetings. Paralegals might investigate the facts of cases and ensure that all relevant information is considered. They also identify appropriate laws, judicial decisions, legal articles, and other materials that are relevant to assigned cases. After they analyze and organize the information, paralegals may prepare written reports that attorneys use in determining how cases should be handled. If attorneys decide to file lawsuits on behalf of clients, paralegals may help prepare the legal arguments, draft pleadings and motions to be filed with the court, obtain affidavits, and assist attorneys during trials. Paralegals also organize and track files of all important case documents and make them available and easily accessible to attorneys. In addition to this preparatory work, paralegals perform a number of other functions. For example, they help draft contracts, mortgages, and separation agreements. They also may assist in preparing tax returns, establishing trust funds, and planning estates. Some paralegals coordinate the activities of other law office employees and maintain financial office records. Computer software packages and the Internet are used to search legal literature stored in computer databases and on CD-ROM. In litigation involving many supporting documents, paralegals usually use computer databases to retrieve, organize, and index various materials. Imaging software allows paralegals to scan documents directly into a database, while billing programs help them to track hours billed to clients. Computer software packages also are used to perform tax computations and explore the consequences of various tax strategies for clients. Paralegals are found in all types of organizations, but most are employed by law firms, corporate legal departments, and various government offices. In these organizations, they can work in many different areas of the law, including litigation, personal injury, corporate law, criminal law, employee benefits, intellectual property, labor law, bankruptcy, immigration, family law, and real estate. As the law becomes more complex, paralegals become more specialized. Within specialties, functions are often broken down further. For example, paralegals specializing in labor law may concentrate exclusively on employee benefits. In small and medium-size law firms, duties are often more general. The tasks of paralegals differ widely according to the type of organization for which they work. A corporate paralegal often assists attorneys with employee contracts, shareholder agreements, stock-option plans, and employee benefit plans. They also may help prepare and file annual financial reports, maintain corporate minutes’ record resolutions, and prepare forms to secure loans for the corporation. Corporate paralegals often monitor and review government regulations to ensure that the corporation is aware of new requirements and is operating within the law. Increasingly, experienced corporate paralegals or paralegal managers are assuming additional supervisory responsibilities such as overseeing team projects. The duties of paralegals who work in the public sector usually vary by agency. In general, litigation paralegals analyze legal material for internal use, maintain reference files, conduct research for attorneys, and collect and analyze evidence for agency hearings. They may prepare informative or explanatory material on laws, agency regulations, and agency policy for general use by the agency and the public. Paralegals employed in community legal-service projects help the poor, the aged
Answered by Ms. Koco

Starve......look for work.......go on welfare........borrow from family...........law sucks........ There are thousand and thousands of talented, experience people on the street due to the economy…the competition for any job is extreme. …people will do anything for much less just to feed their kids……..I don’t expect it to get any better before 2012……sorry……
Answered by kapn