Paralegal
Paralegals may not be the head honcho in the courtroom before a judge and jury. The behind the scene work that a paralegal performs is crucial to a lawyer. Looking at all the tasks that paralegals are responsible for doing, people will definitely realize that paralegals are important to the legal process, almost to the same degree of the work that the attorney is doing. Paralegals do almost everything that lawyers do, except give legal advice or present cases in court. Most of the work paralegals do is behind-the-scenes, which is why they rarely get the praise that the lawyer does.
Job Description
Paralegals often perform legal tasks such as researching and investigating facts, drafting motions, preparing legal documents, and assisting lawyers during the trial in the courtroom. Becoming a paralegal is a total multitasking career. Paralegals have to be ready to handle many different to-do lists all at once and need to be ready to sort through stacks of legal documents. The work load a paralegal deals with on a day to day basis can be tedious and hectic. A paralegal should be able to multitask and enjoy having many tasks needed to be done all around the same time. Time management is essential for a paralegal. Depending on the law firm, paralegals may have other duties. They may appraise and inventory property for estate planning, or manage real estate sales. They may answer questions about legal issues at civil hearings. Some paralegals may help between the people who are selling property and the people who want to buy it. Once a sale is made, paralegals write out payment plans for clients.
Wages
According to the Illinois Career Information Systems, “Over the next decade, the number of jobs for paralegals is expected to double. This is because paralegals help law firms work more
Bibliography: Illinois Career Information System. (2011). Wages, Paralegals and legal assistants (SOC 23- 2011). Retrieved April 24, 2012, From http://ilcis.intocareers.org/info2.aspx?FileID=Occ&FileNum=100146&TopicNum=2 Illinois Career Information System. (2011). Employment and outlook. Retrieved on April 24, 2012, From http://ilcis.intocareers.org/info2.aspx?FileID=Occ&FileNum=100146&TopicNum=3 Paralegal Jobs. (2012). Paralegal career paths-advancement opportunities. Retrieved on April 25, 2012. From http://www.jobmonkey.com/paralegal/career-paths.html