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The differences between paralegals and law clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a law clerk has an average salary of $55,916, which is higher than the $49,943 average annual salary of a paralegal.
The top three skills for a paralegal include litigation, legal research and law firm. The most important skills for a law clerk are litigation, legal issues, and legal memos.
| Paralegal | Law Clerk | |
| Yearly salary | $49,943 | $55,916 |
| Hourly rate | $24.01 | $26.88 |
| Growth rate | 14% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 5,177 | 75,014 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 46 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 12 | - |
Paralegals are law firm or legal department employees who work on cases with lawyers. They handle different activities, usually administrative or clerical, such as organizing and maintaining files, updating records, and managing correspondences, among others. Paralegals also handle different activities directly related to active cases being worked on by lawyers in the firm or department. They assist lawyers on cases by preparing materials needed for trials, conducting legal research, verifying trial facts, helping during interviews, getting statements from those involved in the case, and creating presentation materials. Paralegals should have knowledge of laws and should be familiar with landmark cases.
Law clerks are employees in a legal firm who handle clerical tasks for the office. They handle the office's official phone lines, answering incoming calls, and making outgoing calls. They also field office correspondence, often receiving incoming mail and distributing them to their addressees. They manage office documents and ensure that they are correctly filed and labeled in their respective storage bins. Law clerks help make office life more comfortable because they make sure that the office is running well. They also manage appointments and office calendars.
Paralegals and law clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Paralegal | Law Clerk | |
| Average salary | $49,943 | $55,916 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $70,000 | Between $27,000 And $114,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | Arnall Golden Gregory | Hughes Hubbard & Reed |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Professional |
There are a few differences between a paralegal and a law clerk in terms of educational background:
| Paralegal | Law Clerk | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Legal Support Services | Law |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between paralegals' and law clerks' demographics:
| Paralegal | Law Clerk | |
| Average age | 46 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 22.4% Female, 77.6% | Male, 52.5% Female, 47.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 20.2% Asian, 5.7% White, 59.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 8.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 10.3% White, 53.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 13% |