How To Become An Assistant Paralegal: What It Is and Career Path

What is an assistant paralegal and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Candidates who are more inclined towards the legal research side can take up the job of an assistant paralegal. Investing and gathering the facts of a case is what assistant paralegals normally do, and apart from that, they are also responsible for arranging legal documents and evidence for case preparation and attorney reviewal. Assistant paralegals also assist lawyers in preparing for trials by writing and summarizing reports.

An assistant paralegal usually has a bachelor's degree in law, political science, legal support services, or a similar field. A candidate in this position has great communication skills and is detail-oriented, and highly organized. While working as an assistant paralegal, you can expect to earn $24 for an hour in your pocket, which means that you will make around $50,000 in a year. The career growth rate is great and more jobs for assistant paralegals are opening up in the US in the coming years.

ScoreAssistant ParalegalUS Average

Salary

4.3

Avg. Salary $55,677

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.0

Growth rate 14%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.40%

Asian 5.39%

Black or African American 8.25%

Hispanic or Latino 21.76%

Unknown 4.72%

White 59.48%

Gender

female 69.90%

male 30.10%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

7.0

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.5

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.3

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an assistant paralegal

Explore assistant paralegal education requirements

Most common assistant paralegal degrees

Bachelor's

66.9 %

Associate

14.9 %

Master's

5.3 %

Start to develop specific assistant paralegal skills

Skills	Percentages
Law Firm	11.64%
Litigation	11.12%
Paralegals	10.09%
Status Reports	6.61%
Legal Research	5.77%

Complete relevant assistant paralegal training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New assistant paralegals learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an assistant paralegal based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real assistant paralegal resumes.

Research assistant paralegal duties and responsibilities

Lead communications with courts, and other regulatory authorities in multiple state jurisdictions to ensure jurisdictional and regulatory compliance in litigation.
Assist asbestos supervising attorney in all litigation tasks for product liability suits.
Produce innovative bankruptcy PowerPoint marketing presentation
Assist in depositions, providing administrative support to prominent law firms and DOJ officials.

Prepare your assistant paralegal resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your assistant paralegal resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an assistant paralegal resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable assistant paralegal resume templates

Build a professional assistant paralegal resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your assistant paralegal resume.