Paralegals and Legal Assistants
Also called: Certified Paralegal, Contract Preparer, Contracts Specialist, Corporate Legal Assistant, Corporate Paralegal, Document Processor, Estate Planning Paralegal, Family Law Paralegal
Assist lawyers by investigating facts, preparing legal documents, or researching legal precedent.
What paralegals and legal assistants do
Typical tasks
- Prepare affidavits or other documents, such as legal correspondence, and organize and maintain documents in paper or electronic filing system.
- Prepare, edit, or review legal documents, including legislation, briefs, pleadings, appeals, wills, contracts, and real estate closing statements.
- Investigate facts and law of cases and search pertinent sources, such as public records and internet sources, to determine causes of action and to prepare cases.
- Prepare for trial by performing tasks such as organizing exhibits.
- Meet with clients and other professionals to discuss details of cases.
- Gather and analyze research data, such as statutes, decisions, and legal articles, codes, and documents.
- File pleadings with court clerks.
- Direct and coordinate law office activity, including delivery of subpoenas.
- Call upon witnesses to testify at hearings.
- Arbitrate disputes between parties and assist in the real estate closing process, such as by reviewing title searches.
- Appraise and inventory real and personal property for estate planning.
- Keep and monitor legal volumes to ensure that the law library is up-to-date.
Typical path into the job (BLS)
Paralegals and Legal Assistants salary
The median annual wage for paralegals and legal assistants is $62,890 (BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national). The lowest 10 percent earn less than $44,740 and the highest 10 percent earn more than $101,500. The mean annual wage is $69,700.
The mean hourly wage of $33.00 is 4.6× the federal minimum wage of $7.25. State minimums are higher in most large states. Minimum wage by state →
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The comparison uses this occupation's BLS wage percentiles, adjusted for age with BLS median weekly earnings by age group (Q3 2026).
Pay by percentile
Annual wage percentiles from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Percentiles are a good proxy for pay by experience.
Projected pay for Paralegals and Legal Assistants (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today $62,890 → in 3 years $66,700 → in 5 years $69,400 → in 10 years $76,500 (10-year range $65,800–$88,800). The model assumes pay growth of +2.0% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (BLS projected employment growth), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for Paralegals and Legal Assistants
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace Paralegals and Legal Assistants? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using O*NET work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for Paralegals and Legal Assistants
Employment projections are from the BLS Employment Projections program (2025–35). Annual openings include both new jobs and replacement of workers who leave the occupation.
The same job in Japan
| Paralegals and Legal Assistants United States | 検察事務官 Japan | パラリーガル（弁護士補助職） Japan | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median / average pay | $62,890 | ¥9.81M ≈ $62,392 | ¥5.29M ≈ $33,620 |
| Pay in 10 years (est.) | $76,500 | ¥10.59M | ¥5.91M |
| Outlook score | 40 | 37 | 39 |
| AI replacement risk | 77% High | 78% High | 81% Very high |
| Workers | 393K | — | — |
Matched by occupation (SOC code). Yen converted at 157.25 JPY/USD for reference; Japanese figures are averages, U.S. figures are medians, and the surveys define occupations differently.
Skills, education and requirements for Paralegals and Legal Assistants
Key skills
O*NET skill level ratings (0–7).
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Education of workers
Training before entry
Related work experience
Job Zone 3 — medium preparation needed (O*NET)
Difficulty of entry: ★★★☆☆ Moderate (from education, training, experience and Job Zone)
How to become paralegals and legal assistants
A step-by-step guide for this occupation is being prepared. The education, training and experience data above show the typical path.
Career path and how to earn more as paralegals and legal assistants
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by percentile is shown in the Pay section.