There are more than 1.3 million lawyers in the United States, one-fourth of them in two states: New York (188K) and California (170K). In 2013, lawyers of color were just 11%. A decade later, that total has almost doubled to 21%. However, the biggest increase within the minority lawyer community is with Asian American lawyers, not Black ones. In 2013, Black lawyers totaled 4.8%. Ten years later, the total was 5%.

But for aspiring lawyers (and attorneys) who are interested in joining that 5% (and helping to increase the number), becoming a paralegal is one step in that direction.

Deciding Between A Career As A Lawyer, Attorney Or Professional Paralegal

While interested legal students will be able to make the final decision about which path they want to go into, they should have a general idea about whether they want to be an attorney, a lawyer or a paralegal. There is a common misunderstanding that you have to do all three in order to work within the legal industry. That is incorrect.

In regard to lawyers versus attorneys, the terms are often used interchangeably in informal conversation, but these two professions are not the same. An attorney usually must be licensed to practice law in a courtroom. Trial attorneys must graduate from an American Bar Association (ABA) accredited law school with a J.D., pass each state bar exam for the locations where they want to practice, pass a background check, and take an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the laws of their practice states.

On the other professional end, while not all juris doctorate (J.D.) graduates are lawyers, almost every lawyer has a J.D. (California, Virginia and Washington offer apprenticeship programs that allow people to become lawyers without attending law school. Wyoming, New York and Maine prefer at least some law school experience.)

It is very possible to get the legal education and not want to be a trial attorney, especially considering law school teaches by the book instead of field training in courtrooms. This may be where becoming a professional paralegal comes in handy.

What Does A Paralegal Do?

If you’re on the fence about the lawyer versus attorney career field, becoming a paralegal is a useful way of learning more about the day-to-day of both legal professionals. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the pay is between $51K to $77K.

Paralegals and legal assistants typically do the following:

  • Investigate and gather factual information about a case
  • Research relevant laws, regulations and legal articles for a case
  • Gather, organize and maintain legal documents (ex. affidavits, formal statements as evidence)
  • Draft confirmation letters and contracts
  • Assist attorneys with handling exhibits, taking notes or reviewing trial transcripts
  • File exhibits, briefs and appeals with the appropriate court, government agency or opposing counsel
  • Call clients, witnesses and other attorneys to schedule interviews, meetings and depositions

The area of law will also determine quite a bit of the work. For example, immigration attorneys may be seeing a spike in clients due to deportations whereas moratorium attorneys may not have the same level of work after the COVID-19 pandemic.

What Education Is Needed To Become A Paralegal?

An associate’s degree or certificate in paralegal studies from the American Bar Association (ABA) are common to enter the workforce as a paralegal. (Keep in mind that the ABA does not certify paralegals, and paralegals may not represent themselves as “ABA-certified paralegals.” The ABA’s approval applies solely to the paralegal education program rather than the individual paralegal.)

Depending on the law firm, some attorneys prefer paralegals with a bachelor’s degree while others are okay with a high school diploma or sufficient work experience. While certification can take a few months, the undergraduate degrees average two to four years. Paralegals can also earn a Master of Science (M.S.) or a Master of Arts (M.A.) in Paralegal Studies. 

Some professional soft skills that you should be a natural at include:

  • Deadline-driven
  • Detail oriented (especially with mundane documents or repetition)
  • Effective communicator (written and oral)
  • Highly organized (filing, faxing, emailing and scanning are common)
  • Reading enthusiast (specifically due to the amount of fact-gathering, studying relevant laws, confirming missing information in documents)
  • Respectful of privacy (due to numerous confidential docs)
  • Social and patient with varying personalities
  • Team-oriented

And while Reddit users may not know who is legitimately working in the profession they claim, common complaints while working in this career field include the usual office complaints: office politics, colorful (read: mean) personalities from their attorney bosses, underpayments and being overworked. However, one consistent compliment about being a paralegal is never being bored.

“I enjoy the work!” said one Reddit user. “It’s like solving a puzzle every time. The more you know about the area of law you work in, the better your ability to troubleshoot.”

If paralegals find that that troubleshooting makes them want more advanced opportunities, their legal background may be able to take them all the way to passing the bar and hiring their own paralegals in the future.