Legal Secretary Careers: Job Description & Salary Info

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Get the truth about a legal secretary's salary, education requirements and career prospects. Read the job description and see the pros and cons of becoming a legal secretary.
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Pros and Cons of Being a Legal Secretary

Legal secretaries help a law firm run smoothly by handling several tasks, like answering messages and maintaining records. You can learn other ups and downs to becoming a legal secretary by reading below.

PROS of Being a Legal Secretary
Income is above the national average overall ($45,000 or so)*
Minimal education requirements overall*
Promotion possible with additional education and training*
Office settings are typically comfortable to work in*

CONS of Being a Legal Secretary
Work can be routine or mundane*
Specific and specialized industry terminology is needed by legal secretaries*
Slow employment growth*
Knowledge of software applications is necessary*

Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Essential Vocational Information

Job Description

Some typical job duties of a secretary include maintaining records and messages, greeting visitors and clients, handling phone calls, completing forms, replying to messages and distributing mail. However, the job duties of a legal secretary go above and beyond the normal job duties of a secretary. For example, legal secretaries have to work with legal papers, like complaints, responses, subpoenas, motions and summonses. This is normally done with the guidance of a paralegal or attorney. A legal secretary might have to assist with legal research by examining legal journals and confirming that legal brief citations and quotes are accurate.

Salary Information

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in May 2014 reported that legal secretaries made an average of $21.96 per hour. This hourly wage resulted in a mean yearly income of about $45,670. Some legal secretaries saw earnings closer to $70,000 according to the top ten percentile of wage estimates for this vocation. The District of Columbia, New Jersey, California, Delaware, Alabama and Pennsylvania were the regions that paid the highest average salaries for legal secretaries.

Job Outlook

A slower-than-average employment growth was expected for legal secretaries. For the 2012-2022 decade, the projected employment for legal secretaries was expected to decline by 3%. The legal industry would see a slower-than-average growth overall, and that is what is thought to be the cause of the decline for legal secretaries.

Occupational Requirements

Training and Education

Basic secretary skills can be acquired through job training, high school programs or post-secondary education schools. You'll typically want to develop a familiarity with computer programs like Microsoft Office. Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Excel are all commonly used. Developing good writing skills is important as well, since legal secretaries create a lot of reports and e-mails. Additionally, as a legal secretary, you'll have to learn the terminology and lingo used in law. Some schools offer programs that are geared specifically towards legal secretaries.

What Are Employers Looking For?

Communication and interpersonal skills are crucial for legal secretaries, since employers want employees who can greet clients in a friendly manner and work with co-workers in a civil way. Organizational skills are important for many employers because papers, schedules and forms all have to be put into proper order. Organized legal secretaries can help firms run smoothly and efficiently. You can learn what real employers who posted job advertisements in November 2012 wanted in legal secretaries by reading below.

  • A legal secretary opening in Florida preferred applicants to have insurance defense litigation experience.
  • A Michigan company wanted a legal secretary with a typing speed of 75 WPM or higher.
  • Proofreading and Microsoft Office skills were necessary for a legal secretary job in California.
  • E-filing experience was a must for a business in Pennsylvania looking for a legal secretary.

How Can You Stand Out as a Legal Secretary

Obtaining certification is one way you can stand out amongst other legal secretaries. Professional certification shows that you're committed to your field and it demonstrates that you're proficient in skills used by legal secretaries. Certifications generally have minimum education and experience requirements. Passing an examination is another typical requirement. Several organizations are out there that offer different certifications for legal secretaries. The Certified Legal Secretary Specialist is available through Legal Secretaries International, while the Accredited Legal Secretary certification and the Professional Legal Secretary designation are available through the Association for Legal Professionals (NALS).

Other Career Paths

If you would like to further support lawyers in their work, you might want to look into being a paralegal. In this occupation, you'd investigate the facts of a case and perform research on various regulations or laws that might be applicable to the case. You'll provide this information in a report for the lawyer you work for and assist them during the trial for the case you worked on. To become a paralegal, you'll typically need some specialized job training or post-secondary education along with some work experience in a law firm. Paralegals earned roughly $50,000 or so per year on average as of May 2011, according to the BLS. Paralegals were projected to see an employment growth of 18% from 2010 to 2020.

If you want to be involved in legal proceedings, you could consider becoming a court reporter. As a court reporter, you'll make transcriptions of legal proceedings. You have to capture every word, along with physical gestures and actions that are made. You'll need a post-secondary education certificate and a state license (in most instances) to be a court reporter. The BLS projected a 14% growth in employment for court reporters from 2010-2020. As of May 2011, court reporters made an average annual salary of about $54,000.

Popular Schools

  • Online Programs Available
    1. Bryant & Stratton College

    Program Options

    Associate's
      • AS - Paralegal Studies
      • AS - Criminal Justice
      • Criminal Justice Studies - AAS
      • Paralegal Studies - AAS
    Certificate
      • Legal Office Assistant Diploma
      • Criminal Justice and Security Services Diploma
      • Criminal Justice and Security Svcs. - Diploma
  • Online Programs Available
    2. Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology

    Program Options

    Master's
      • Masters in Dispute Resolution
      • Masters in Legal Studies
  • Online Programs Available
    3. Fordham University

    Program Options

    Master's
      • Master of Studies in Law in Corporate Compliance
  • Online Programs Available
    4. Liberty University

    Program Options

    Doctorate
      • LLM: International Legal Studies
      • Doctor of Criminal Justice: General
      • Doctor of Criminal Justice: Homeland Security
      • Doctor of Criminal Justice: Leadership
    Certificate
      • CTG: Criminal Justice
  • Online Programs Available
    5. Penn Foster

    Program Options

    Certificate
      • Career Diploma - Administrative Assistant
  • Online Programs Available
    6. Saint Leo University

    Program Options

    Doctorate
      • Doctor of Criminal Justice: Education
    Master's
      • MS: Criminal Justice
      • MS: Criminal Justice - Critical Incident Management
    Bachelor's
      • BA: Criminal Justice
      • BA: Criminal Justice - Criminalistics
    Associate's
      • AA: Criminal Justice
  • University of Maryland Global Campus

  • Chula Vista, CA

    Southwestern College

  • Online Programs Available
    9. Penn Foster High School

    Program Options

    High School Diploma
      • HS Diploma

Featured Schools

Bryant & Stratton College

  • AS - Paralegal Studies
  • AS - Criminal Justice
  • Legal Office Assistant Diploma
  • Criminal Justice and Security Services Diploma

What is your high school graduation status?

Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology

  • Masters in Dispute Resolution
  • Masters in Legal Studies

What is your highest level of education completed?

Fordham University

  • Master of Studies in Law in Corporate Compliance

What is your highest level of education completed?

Liberty University

  • LLM: International Legal Studies
  • Doctor of Criminal Justice: General
  • CTG: Criminal Justice

What is your highest level of education?

Penn Foster

  • Career Diploma - Administrative Assistant

What is your highest level of education?

Saint Leo University

  • Doctor of Criminal Justice: Education
  • MS: Criminal Justice
  • BA: Criminal Justice
  • AA: Criminal Justice

What is your highest level of education completed?

University of Maryland Global Campus

Southwestern College