Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between paralegals and legal administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a paralegal and a legal administrator. Additionally, a paralegal has an average salary of $49,943, which is higher than the $47,198 average annual salary of a legal administrator.
The top three skills for a paralegal include litigation, legal research and law firm. The most important skills for a legal administrator are veterans, litigation, and powerpoint.
| Paralegal | Legal Administrator | |
| Yearly salary | $49,943 | $47,198 |
| Hourly rate | $24.01 | $22.69 |
| Growth rate | 14% | 14% |
| Number of jobs | 5,177 | 56,419 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 55% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 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.
The job of legal administrative assistants is to provide support to lawyers and paralegals. They typically perform legal research, manage schedules, and draft legal-related documents. Other duties include interpreting laws, regulations, and rulings in legal documents, obtaining information from other agencies or organizations, and preparing management and legal reports. In addition, legal administrative assistants are responsible for updating and maintaining databases and ensuring to provide effective administrative assistance. They are also expected to schedule client meetings and court hearings.
Paralegals and legal administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Paralegal | Legal Administrator | |
| Average salary | $49,943 | $47,198 |
| Salary range | Between $35,000 And $70,000 | Between $33,000 And $66,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | Arnall Golden Gregory | Ropes & Gray |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Government |
There are a few differences between a paralegal and a legal administrator in terms of educational background:
| Paralegal | Legal Administrator | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 51% | Bachelor's Degree, 55% |
| Most common major | Legal Support Services | Business |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between paralegals' and legal administrators' demographics:
| Paralegal | Legal Administrator | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 22.4% Female, 77.6% | Male, 28.2% Female, 71.8% |
| 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, 9.0% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 5.7% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |