Legal Support Specialist Training and Jobs
Schools and Degrees
Community colleges, technical centers and private careers schools provide legal secretarial programs that take one to two years to complete.
Bachelor's and associate degree programs usually combine paralegal training with courses in other subjects. A small number of schools offer a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in paralegal studies.
The National Association of Legal Assistants provides the Advanced Paralegal certification and the Certified Paralegal credential. The American Alliance of Paralegals, Inc., and the National Federation of Paralegal Association also provide credentials.
Training and Education
Employees normally have moderate-term on-the-job training before landing a job. Degrees are held by 38% of current legal support specialists. Post-secondary schooling was enough for 39% of workers. Education topped out at high school for 23% of employees.
Job Overview
Legal support specialists perform duties for attorneys. The term legal support specialists covers a wide variety of work from filing documents to performing legal research. Legal support specialists work in occupations such as paralegal, legal transcriptionists, legal secretaries and other occupations. Some legal support workers mainly perform administrative duties while others such as paralegals are involved with actual legal work.
Job Requirements
Completing a paralegal program approved by the American Bar Association can improve the chances of getting a job. Regarding the various types of legal support specialist positions, some employers prefer applicants who have some formal training.
Nature of Work
- Prepare trial materials and identify judicial decisions and laws that are relevant to cases
- Arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, court officials and witnesses
- Prepare documents and perform research
- Take care of information processing and storage
Area Job Conditions
You'll see a lot of legal support specialists in Washington (District of Columbia), Jefferson City (Missouri), and Olympia (Washington), and comparatively fewer in Salt Lake City (Utah), Charlotte (North Carolina), and Bridgeport (Connecticut).
Wages for Workers are highest in San Jose (California), Camden (New Jersey), and San Diego (California), and lowest in Kalamazoo (Michigan), South Bend (Indiana), and Durham (North Carolina).
Part-Time and Self Employment
Part-time work suffices for 14% of legal support specialists. Workers working on their own make up 14% of the total.
Legal Support Specialists by Metropolitan Area (city and its surroundings)
In the table below, a Job Density near 0% means the area has an average number of people in this occupation, for its population. A higher or lower Job Density (e.g., +22% or -45%) tells you there are that many more or fewer workers of that type there than in the average US metro area. So, the higher the number, the more common the occupation.
Alabama
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham | $52,000 | 70 | -25% |
| Montgomery | $42,000 | 40 | +35% |
Arkansas
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Smith | $46,000 | 30 | +36% |
| Little Rock | $44,000 | 80 | +23% |
California
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fresno | $62,000 | 130 | +117% |
| Los Angeles | $58,000 | 1,410 | +82% |
| Oxnard | $50,000 | 140 | +152% |
| Riverside | $48,000 | 440 | +92% |
| Sacramento | $68,000 | 490 | +197% |
| San Diego | $68,000 | 590 | +136% |
| San Francisco | $64,000 | 830 | +339% |
| San Jose | $61,000 | 230 | +35% |
| Santa Ana | $51,000 | 540 | +95% |
Colorado
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boulder | $52,000 | 30 | +8% |
| Colorado Springs | $53,000 | 50 | +7% |
| Fort Collins | $47,000 | 40 | +77% |
| Grand Junction | $36,000 | 30 | +213% |
| Greeley | $43,000 | 60 | +381% |
Connecticut
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford | $55,000 | 140 | +28% |
| New Haven | $57,000 | 30 | -41% |
Delaware
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover | $48,000 | 60 | +599% |
| Wilmington | $49,000 | 60 | -2% |
Florida
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cape Coral | $42,000 | 30 | -16% |
| Deltona | $41,000 | 70 | +151% |
| Fort Lauderdale | $41,000 | 210 | +58% |
| Gainesville | $34,000 | 30 | +38% |
| Jacksonville | $49,000 | 160 | +40% |
| Lakeland | $43,000 | 40 | +15% |
| Miami | $44,000 | 480 | +157% |
| Pensacola | $43,000 | 60 | +122% |
| Tallahassee | $43,000 | 160 | +445% |
| Tampa | $46,000 | 520 | +138% |
| West Palm Beach | $50,000 | 100 | +2% |
Georgia
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | $42,000 | 740 | +68% |
| Savannah | $52,000 | 50 | +85% |
Hawaii
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honolulu | $48,000 | 290 | +250% |
Idaho
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boise | $31,000 | 120 | +147% |
Illinois
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | $49,000 | 740 | +3% |
| Springfield | $45,000 | 40 | +109% |
Indiana
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Evansville | $33,000 | 40 | +28% |
Kansas
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Topeka | $49,000 | 60 | +205% |
| Wichita | $46,000 | 100 | +86% |
Kentucky
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lexington | $43,000 | 70 | +57% |
Louisiana
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baton Rouge | $44,000 | 80 | +14% |
| New Orleans | $47,000 | 120 | +20% |
| Shreveport | $47,000 | 30 | -9% |
Maryland
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | $56,000 | 650 | +160% |
| Bethesda | $101,000 | 260 | +137% |
Massachusetts
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boston | $54,000 | 200 | -40% |
Michigan
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit | $54,000 | 130 | +2% |
| Warren | $43,000 | 130 | -37% |
Missouri
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson City | $40,000 | 390 | +2948% |
| Kansas City | $50,000 | 370 | +91% |
| St Louis | $48,000 | 340 | +33% |
Nebraska
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Omaha | $49,000 | 110 | +24% |
Nevada
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Las Vegas | $47,000 | 200 | +24% |
| Reno | $53,000 | 70 | +99% |
New Jersey
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camden | $58,000 | 90 | -9% |
| Newark | $65,000 | 190 | 0% |
| Trenton | $65,000 | 70 | +66% |
New Mexico
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Albuquerque | $48,000 | 80 | +10% |
New York
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Albany | $45,000 | 470 | +451% |
| Nassau | $58,000 | 230 | -5% |
| New York | $55,000 | 1,250 | +25% |
| Rochester | $44,000 | 40 | -58% |
| Syracuse | $46,000 | 40 | -32% |
North Carolina
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asheville | $33,000 | 30 | -8% |
| Durham | 70 | +36% | |
| Greensboro | $55,000 | 50 | -25% |
| Raleigh | $56,000 | 180 | +84% |
Ohio
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Akron | $56,000 | 40 | -34% |
| Cincinnati | $53,000 | 270 | +40% |
| Cleveland | $46,000 | 190 | -3% |
| Dayton | $53,000 | 70 | -3% |
| Toledo | $56,000 | 40 | -27% |
| Youngstown | $52,000 | 80 | +90% |
Oklahoma
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma City | $39,000 | 90 | -18% |
| Tulsa | $43,000 | 40 | -51% |
Oregon
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eugene | $47,000 | 70 | +175% |
| Portland | $55,000 | 170 | -13% |
Pennsylvania
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harrisburg | $51,000 | 110 | +83% |
| Philadelphia | $49,000 | 220 | -40% |
| Pittsburgh | $49,000 | 90 | -59% |
Rhode Island
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Providence | $42,000 | 200 | +89% |
South Carolina
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charleston | $42,000 | 40 | -26% |
Tennessee
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chattanooga | $37,000 | 70 | +66% |
Texas
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austin | $51,000 | 400 | +167% |
| Beaumont | $48,000 | 40 | +36% |
| Fort Worth | $44,000 | 140 | -15% |
| Houston | $54,000 | 580 | +15% |
| San Antonio | $48,000 | 260 | +56% |
Utah
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salt Lake City | $42,000 | 100 | -13% |
Virginia
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Richmond | $37,000 | 220 | +88% |
| Virginia Beach | $45,000 | 390 | +170% |
Washington
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bremerton | $62,000 | 40 | +176% |
| Kennewick | $54,000 | 30 | +69% |
| Olympia | $49,000 | 350 | +1900% |
| Seattle | $59,000 | 770 | +187% |
| Spokane | $59,000 | 130 | +244% |
| Tacoma | $55,000 | 120 | +143% |
West Virginia
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charleston | $45,000 | 100 | +279% |
| Huntington | $44,000 | 50 | +146% |
Wisconsin
| City and Area | Median Salary | Employees | Job Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madison | $45,000 | 120 | +89% |
| Milwaukee | $53,000 | 120 | -24% |