Legal · Holland code CIE

Paralegals and Legal Assistants

Assist lawyers by investigating facts, preparing legal documents, or researching legal precedent. Conduct research to support a legal proceeding, to formulate a defense, or to initiate legal action.

Also called: Legal Assistant, Legal Clerk, Paralegal, Paralegal Specialist, Immigration Paralegal, Law Associate, Legal Analyst, Legal Processing Assistant.

O*NET 23-2011.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $62,890; Middle half earn $50,340 to $80,080. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: Bachelor's Degree; 37% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 3 of 5; Medium preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
US employment outlook, 2024 to 2034: 0% · Little or no change; 376,200 jobs in 2024, projected 376,800. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which groups this with similar roles as "Paralegals and legal assistants".

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

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.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Writing4.0 / 5
Reading Comprehension3.9 / 5
Active Listening3.9 / 5
Speaking3.6 / 5
Critical Thinking3.3 / 5
Active Learning3.0 / 5

Knowledge areas

Law and Government4.8 / 5
English Language4.4 / 5
Administrative4.2 / 5
Computers and Electronics3.9 / 5
Customer and Personal Service3.6 / 5
Administration and Management3.3 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic12
Investigative67
Artistic21
Social35
Enterprising49
Conventional71

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

legal service manager · DE Leiter eines Büros für Rechtsdienstleistungen/Leiterin eines Büros für Rechtsdienstleistungen · FR responsable de service juridique
lawyer · DE Rechtsanwalt/Rechtsanwältin · FR avocat/avocate
corporate lawyer · DE Firmenanwalt/Firmenanwältin · FR avocat d’affaires/avocate d’affaires
notary · DE Notar/Notarin · FR notaire
court jury coordinator · DE Gerichtskoordinator/Gerichtskoordinatorin · FR coordonnateur de jury de cour/coordonnatrice de jury de cour
legal administrative assistant · DE Anwaltssekretär/Anwaltssekretärin · FR auxiliaire juridique

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Solicitors and lawyers (2412)216,100 employed
Senior officers in fire, ambulance, prison and related services (1163)8,000 employed
Legal associate professionals (3520)57,300 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Technicians and associate professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Technicians and associate professionals, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€50,992
Austria	€46,986
Germany	€44,473
Netherlands	€42,448
Ireland	€41,613
Sweden	€41,155
Italy	€34,882
France	€34,816
Spain	€29,757
Portugal	€18,080
Poland	€12,108

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.29. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (23-2011).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test