How to hire a litigation legal assistant

How to hire a litigation legal assistant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step litigation legal assistant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a litigation legal assistant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new litigation legal assistant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a litigation legal assistant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the litigation legal assistant you need to hire. Certain litigation legal assistant roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a litigation legal assistant to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a litigation legal assistant that fits the bill.

   This list presents litigation legal assistant salaries for various positions.

   Type of Litigation Legal Assistant	Description	Hourly rate
   Litigation Legal Assistant	Paralegals and legal assistants do a variety of tasks to support lawyers, including maintaining and organizing files, conducting legal research, and drafting documents.	$16-35
   Contractor-Paralegal	A Contractor-Paralegal works for a law firm or corporate legal department for a specified amount of time, or for a specified task. They can be specialized in the entertainment industry or in providing services to healthcare companies and insurance providers.	$17-47
   Bankruptcy Paralegal	A Bankruptcy Paralegal assists lawyers and their clients through the bankruptcy process. Their primary duties include collecting and reviewing paperwork for petitions, drafting pleadings, and preparing all documents required by the bankruptcy court.	$14-49

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Litigation
   • Law Firm
   • Trial Preparation
   • Legal Research
   • Travel Arrangements
   • Subpoenas
   • Proofreading
   • Administrative Tasks
   • Litigation Support
   • Dictation
   • Excellent Organizational
   • PowerPoint
   • Federal Courts
   • Interrogatories

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage and coordinate various aspects of major pharmaceutical litigation including budgeting, work scope plans, staffing and defense coordination.
   • Prepare and review all discovery materials, including depositions, subpoenas, interrogatories, interviews.
   • Prepare PowerPoint presentations for visual aids at trial and for inhouse presentations.
   • Review and respond to interrogatories and discovery.
   • Prepare answers to and draft interrogatories and document requests.
   • Prepare defensive pleadings, motions and affidavits including discovery.

   More litigation legal assistant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your litigation legal assistant job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A litigation legal assistant salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a litigation legal assistant in Wyoming may be lower than in California, and an entry-level litigation legal assistant usually earns less than a senior-level litigation legal assistant. Additionally, a litigation legal assistant with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average litigation legal assistant salary

   $51,253yearly

   $24.64 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level litigation legal assistant salary

   $35,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 19, 2026

   Average litigation legal assistant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$73,414	$35
   2	District of Columbia	$67,405	$32
   3	Washington	$63,810	$31
   4	New Jersey	$61,164	$29
   5	Massachusetts	$57,093	$27
   6	New York	$56,887	$27
   7	New Hampshire	$56,015	$27
   8	Texas	$55,821	$27
   9	Virginia	$55,715	$27
   10	Oregon	$55,680	$27
   11	Colorado	$53,811	$26
   12	West Virginia	$52,138	$25
   13	Illinois	$50,016	$24
   14	Maryland	$49,281	$24
   15	Minnesota	$49,266	$24
   16	Michigan	$48,856	$23
   17	Florida	$46,711	$22
   18	Kentucky	$46,331	$22
   19	Arizona	$43,897	$21
   20	Georgia	$43,569	$21

   Average litigation legal assistant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Earthjustice	$70,284	$33.79
   2	Amazon	$64,241	$30.89	10
   3	Roetzel & Andress	$60,522	$29.10	11
   4	McGlinchey Stafford	$59,563	$28.64
   5	Kelley Kronenberg	$58,685	$28.21	15
   6	RemX	$56,191	$27.01
   7	Shutts & Bowen	$54,082	$26.00	9
   8	Crumley Roberts	$52,207	$25.10	6
   9	Aldridge Pite	$51,855	$24.93	28
   10	CNY Outsourcing	$51,726	$24.87
   11	KNF&T Staffing Resources	$51,305	$24.67
   12	Juno Inc.	$51,243	$24.64	2
   13	Womble	$50,937	$24.49
   14	Randstad North America, Inc.	$50,894	$24.47	2
   15	Robert Half	$50,893	$24.47	371
   16	Metropolitan	$50,087	$24.08
   17	West Virginia University	$49,660	$23.88
   18	DL solutions	$48,991	$23.55
   19	Law Firm	$48,962	$23.54	1
   20	Washington State University	$48,068	$23.11

4. Writing a litigation legal assistant job description

   A litigation legal assistant job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a litigation legal assistant job description:

   Litigation legal assistant job description example

   Under the supervision of the Manager of Litigation Legal Assistants / Specialists and attorneys, the Legal Assistant will work closely with the Litigation Practice Group to provide support to lawyers throughout the litigation / arbitration process.This includes the initial information gathering stage, support with preparation of pleadings and correspondence, discovery (including assistance with the retrieval, review and production of documents), briefing (including assistance with filing in state and federal courts), trials, hearings, administrative proceedings, settlements, as well as careful archival of case material.The Legal Assistant must be exceptionally organized and proactive, willing and able to take ownership of tasks, and must deliver work product of the highest quality.
   Key Responsibilities
   Assist with document retrieval, review, organization, and production. Maintain case pleadings, correspondence, discovery and research. Manage case calendars. Support trial, hearing and arbitration preparation and assist in related proceedings. Compile document collection, production and privilege logs; prepare exhibit lists. Coordinate depositions and prepare witness kits. Support attorneys with court filings, including adherence to strict deadlines and local / individual court practices. Support preparation of documents in accordance with federal and state court rules. Conduct legal research using Bloomberg, Lexis, Westlaw Next, Pacer, etc. Coordinate work with outside document and litigation vendors. Cite-check, Shepardize and Bluebook briefs; prepare tables of contents and authorities, assemble accompanying exhibits. Prepare and release daily diaries and weekly timesheets. Prepare audit response letters. Assist with special projects, e.g., monitor topics of interest to attorneys, coordinate meetings, etc. Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.
   Knowledge, Skills & Attributes
   Superior written and verbal communication skills. Excellent attention to detail and strong organizational skills. Ability to produce high-quality work product under pressure and tight deadlines. Strong computer skills, including proficiency with Microsoft Office. Ability to carefully and accurately follow instructions and prioritize work appropriately. Ability to maintain confidentiality and exercise discretion in a professional manner. Ability to take ownership of tasks and think creatively. Ability to work independently and as a team player. Ability to analyze information and solve problems. Knowledge of factual issues and court procedures for assigned matters.
   Education & Experience
   
   Essential
   BS/BA degree. 3-5 years' experience as a litigation paralegal. Strong computer skills, including proficiency with Excel and PowerPoint. Trial experience. Experience in cite-checking and the Bluebook.
   Desirable Experience in preparation of audit response letters.
   Physical Activity/Other Miscellaneous
   Flexibility to work outside standard business hours. Flexibility to travel as needed. Ability to lift/carry up to 15 pounds. Location(s)
   New York-599

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find litigation legal assistants for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any litigation legal assistants they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level litigation legal assistants with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your litigation legal assistant job on Zippia to find and recruit litigation legal assistant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit litigation legal assistants, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new litigation legal assistant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the litigation legal assistant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new litigation legal assistant. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a litigation legal assistant?