Written by Polina Krivosejeva
Aspiring solicitors who are applying for vacation schemes and training contracts will know that it can be a challenging and frustrating process due to stiff competition with hundreds, if not thousands, of candidates applying for limited spaces. With such fierce competition, it is vital to ensure that your experiences are as varied as possible to stand out. One of many ways to ensure this is to find a paralegal role.
In this article, we will discuss what the role of a paralegal involves, what are the benefits of securing a paralegal position, give you some practical tips as to how you can successfully secure a paralegal role and discuss where you can find one.
What do paralegals do?
As a paralegal, you will be working in a law firm, alongside other legal professionals: trainees, associates and partners on a wide variety of administrative and legal work. The type of work you may be doing as a paralegal varies vastly depending on a practice area and the firm you are working at – some paralegals may be solely involved in support positions, while others may be handling caseloads of their own. Some examples of paralegal tasks are:
- Drafting and proofreading legal documents;
- Conducting a detailed research of various areas of law;
- Investigating, analysing, assorting and inputting legal data;
- Admin tasks, such as providing quotes to/billing clients, organising diaries, scheduling meetings;
- Liaising with clients, third parties and other legal professionals over the phone and via email;
- Giving clients legal information and updating them on the progress of their matter; and
- Going to court and handling a caseload of clients.
This list is by no means exhaustive, but as you can see, the tasks that you may be involved with will expose you to the legal environment and provide a great head start to your career in law.
The benefits of doing a paralegal work
The benefits of securing a paralegal role are vast:
Firstly, as you can see from the list of tasks that paralegals tend to perform, they are very similar to those of a trainee. This means that when you ultimately decide to apply for a TC, you will be already accustomed to some of the duties you will be taking on as a trainee. Equally, this is an amazing opportunity to develop and/or enhance your professional and legal skills, which will ultimately help you to build up a strong CV.
Secondly, irrespective of your job description, any paralegal experience is a great way to get exposure to the whole lifecycle of cases your firm deals with: from client onboarding to how cases progress and conclude. Equally, you will be picking up on important legal terms, concepts and routines.
Thirdly, you will be able to explore practice areas of interest to you and determine your areas of strength. This will help you to give strong application answers because you have already experienced the firm’s practice area(s) first-hand. It also shows recruiters your ambition to gain exposure to a legal business environment and commitment to a career in law. Moreover, it is a great way to showcase that you have been proactively trying to advance in your legal career between studying, applying for and beginning your training contract.
Alternatively, it’s ok not to know for certain if a career as a solicitor is for you when you are fresh from uni. Getting a paralegal job is a great way to explore what it’s like to be a solicitor before you commit yourself to the unforgiving TC application process, and further, to a two-year training. Also, many big law firms tend to recruit two years in advance, so it’s a great way to keep your legal knowledge and skills refreshed.
Lastly, as every law firm irrespective of the size and areas of specialism, is a business, a paralegal role will help you to appreciate the importance of staying commercially aware as a legal professional. For example, working with the legal document management system, which allows you to search through online documents and find what you are looking for in seconds, will help you to show an in-depth understanding of how lawtech advances the delivery of legal services.
How to secure a paralegal role?
The first thing you need to do before you even start applying is to get the basics right, i.e. to make sure that your core CV has a clear structure: Personal Details are set out at the top of your CV -> Education section -> Legal Experience section -> Other Work Experience -> Positions of Responsibility -> Achievements and Awards -> Hobbies and Interests. Note, that the general consensus as to the optimal length of a legal CV is that it should not exceed two A4 pages.
When the structure element is out of the way, you can start adjusting your CV to match it with the specific job description. The purpose of this is to showcase your alignment with the job. Here are some tips on how to do so:
- Review the job description to understand what skills and qualities the employer is looking for and the qualifications required to perform the job. Write down all significant keywords related to skills – words or phrases that seem unique to the job or reoccur throughout the posting.
- If you use a summary at the top of your resume, use it to showcase your most relevant skills and accomplishments based on the keywords you highlighted. You should also mention the title of the job you are applying to, proving that this is a personalised CV.
- Customise your work history so that the recruiter is able to tell immediately that you have relevant experience. If you have a very long work history, you may need to minimise or remove positions that do not align. Or, if your work experience is not extensive, try to identify involvements that you think are most aligned with the job, or where you have gained the most of transferrable skills necessary to succeed in the role.
- The bullet points under each position should always replicate the keywords mentioned in the job description, showing that you will start the job with the required skills and experience.
- Another great trick is to ensure that the first bullet points represent the most relevant responsibilities or tasks. To do so, look at the order of the responsibilities listed in the job description (as those mentioned first may be more of a priority for the employer), and try to mirror the employer’s priorities when organising your CV — the first items they mention should be some of the first items you mention.
To find specific guidance on how to create a perfect cover letter, click here.
Where can you find paralegal roles?
When I began to look for a paralegal role back in the Summer of 2022, I had very limited legal work experience. Even more frustrating was that most job descriptions required at least 6 months of previous work experience as a paralegal. This was a very depressing realisation at the time but now that I have finally secured a paralegal role, I can certainly say that it is absolutely possible if you keep trying and persevere.
Here are some tips on where you can find Paralegal roles:
Local law firms
If you have no prior paralegal experience, local firms are a great place to start. You can make a speculative application by reaching out to the firm via email, explaining why you are applying and what skills you can bring to the table. Don’t forget to attach your CV and, potentially, a tailored cover letter.
Remember, it does not make much difference whether your first paralegal role is in a big/well-known law firm or in a small/high-street law firm. Whichever it is, you will gain invaluable exposure to legal work, begin to develop vital professional skills and boost your legal knowledge. The most important thing is to get your foot through the door and, as soon as you feel you have taken everything from the opportunity at hand, you can then apply for another paralegal role in a different firm.
Firm’s website
If you have a specific firm in mind, potentially following your first-hand experience with the firm through attending an open day or a legal law fair, you may visit their website to see if they offer paralegal roles. It may be worth subscribing to their email job alerts if there is such an option. This way, you will never miss a new role. Alternatively, if you are brave enough, you could give the firm’s HR a ring/send an email and explain why you are interested in the role and why will be a perfect candidate. It adds a personal touch and attests to your determination to get the role.
Linkedin/ other recruitment databases
When I was looking for a paralegal role, I mostly used LinkedIn to search for vacancies. I set up a tailored filter based on the type of roles I was interested in, the tenure of work (eg. full-time) and the preferred locations to receive daily emails with the new opportunities. This is a particularly helpful tool when you are not in a rush and are looking for a “perfect” role. Moreover, by having your notifications on and your profile set up correctly, you will be able to apply ahead of the competition (in some cases), as soon as the position becomes open.
Another important trick is to set up your LinkedIn profile to “open to work” status and update your bio so that it tells the visitors of your profile: what stage you are at; what you are looking for; and when.
Also, law firms’ recruiters often post updates on the roles that are open or are about to open, so it is worth connecting with a few on Linkedin and getting your name/face out there. Even if they do not have any roles on offer at the moment, you can message them, asking them to add your name to their file. To ensure that you are added to their connections, it may be worth sending a personalised invite briefly introducing yourself and saying why you want to connect.
Our founder, Meg, for example, found her first paralegal job straight out of university from LinkedIn. She posted on LinkedIn that she was finding it hard to secure a role with no experience and someone reached out to her in the comments and offered an interview.
In my case, LinkedIn also played an important role in my securing a paralegal role, albeit indirectly. Although I secured my paralegal role through a connection I made at university while running the International Students’ Society, I later learned that the main reason this person reached out to me was because I congratulated them on securing a new role in the firm.
LinkedIn is an extremely powerful tool – don’t underestimate it and utilise it to the fullest!
Other resources: Reed, Targetjobs, Totaljobs, Totallylegal.
Recruitment Agencies
Flex Legal: Flex is an online platform that connects you to flexible roles in the legal industry. To join, you have to send your CV to them and if your previous work experience and skills are considered to be a good fit for paralegal roles, they will onboard you to Flex’s network. You will then be paid on demand for your work when matched with a firm.
Legal recruitment agencies: search for local recruiters in your area (either by googling or via LinkedIn). There are lots of very reputable recruiters all across the country that have very helpful connections with law firms. When speaking with recruiters be clear and decisive when explaining why you want the role and why your skills are perfect for the role. If you do sign up, ensure that you maintain regular contact with recruiters on the available opportunities. I have a personal positive experience with recruitment agencies, and some recruiters still keep reaching out to me to offer opportunities.
Lastly, don’t give up if you can’t secure a paralegal role straight away
There are so many amazing opportunities to build up the transferrable skills that will help you on your unique path to becoming a solicitor, whether it’s a business development or admin role or a role in retail or hospitality. Think communication skills, teamwork, creative problem solving and much more.
You will gain an immense amount of transferable skills from working in any type of business in any industry. Just think for a second: almost all retailers, hotels, TMT companies (e.t.c) are clients of law firms and you get to see the ins and outs of their business operations. This insight and knowledge will add so much value to your CV.
Volunteering is equally an incredible way to build up your CV and learn new skills. You can sign up to volunteer with the Citizen’s Advice Bureau, in a local court (e.g. Support Through Court) or any other Pro Bono initiatives available locally. Not only will you be able to gain a vast amount of invaluable professional skills, but also showcase your commitment to adding value and helping others. In addition, you never know who may be volunteering alongside you – it is a great way to build up your network, which opens up the potential for unexpected opportunities.
Finally, don’t underestimate the benefits of online legal events, whether it’s a themed workshop hosted by a law firm, an open day, or a law fair. These are all activities that will allow you to expand your knowledge about the legal profession, build up connections and just broaden your horizons.
Remember, your experience is unique to you and it absolutely does not matter what you do, so long as you take every opportunity to learn, develop and grow as a person.
To conclude…
I hope that you found this article useful and that the tips discussed herein will assist you on your way to securing a paralegal job, or any other job of your choice. I would like to finish by sharing an amazing quote that nicely fits into the discussion:
In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different.
Coco Chanel
it's all hearsay 