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Senior paralegal vs legal administrator

The differences between senior 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 senior paralegal and a legal administrator. Additionally, a senior paralegal has an average salary of $60,125, which is higher than the $47,198 average annual salary of a legal administrator.

The top three skills for a senior paralegal include legal research, litigation and law firm. The most important skills for a legal administrator are veterans, litigation, and powerpoint.

Senior paralegal vs legal administrator overview

Senior ParalegalLegal Administrator
Yearly salary$60,125$47,198
Hourly rate$28.91$22.69
Growth rate14%14%
Number of jobs4,21356,419
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age4646
Years of experience1212

What does a senior paralegal do?

A Senior Paralegal helps attorneys acquire the information needed for legal research, document preparation, and for other assignments delegated to them. They are usually specialized in certain areas of law, such as tax law.

What does a legal administrator do?

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.

Senior paralegal vs legal administrator salary

Senior paralegals and legal administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

Senior ParalegalLegal Administrator
Average salary$60,125$47,198
Salary rangeBetween $38,000 And $92,000Between $33,000 And $66,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CAWashington, DC
Highest paying stateWashingtonNew York
Best paying companyAmazonRopes & Gray
Best paying industryFinanceGovernment

Differences between senior paralegal and legal administrator education

There are a few differences between a senior paralegal and a legal administrator in terms of educational background:

Senior ParalegalLegal Administrator
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common majorLegal Support ServicesBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaStanford University

Senior paralegal vs legal administrator demographics

Here are the differences between senior paralegals' and legal administrators' demographics:

Senior ParalegalLegal Administrator
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 23.3% Female, 76.7%Male, 28.2% Female, 71.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 5.6% White, 60.3% 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 Percentage9%9%

Differences between senior paralegal and legal administrator duties and responsibilities

Senior paralegal example responsibilities.

  • Achieve sole responsibility for administration of all estates and guardianships.
  • Respond to active litigation in collaboration with internal custodians and external counsel, including responding to discovery requests and subpoenas.
  • Handle all corporate matters including annual shareholder documentation and shareholder meetings, prepare contracts and coordinate execution, and provide litigation support
  • Edit and proofread initial drafts, transcribes dictation and perform cite checking, copy assembly/attachments for filing and/or mailing.
  • Draft and prepare legal documents, correspondence, corporate resolutions and UCC's, together with file maintenance and organization.
  • Position entail all secretarial correspondence, dictation, expense reporting, record keeping and the handling of settlement documents and payments.
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Legal administrator example responsibilities.

  • Prepare and distribute payroll manage daily office operations and equipment and maintain supplies for office to run effectively.
  • Provide information regarding the rules and regulations of the DMV.
  • Proofread legal applications to ensure that all information have been properly submit.
  • Prepare probate and estate documents, accounting statements, and estate tax returns.
  • Determine adequacy and propriety of surety bonds to protect the assets of the beneficiary.
  • Determine a person's eligibility to possess firearms or explosives in accordance with federal law.
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Senior paralegal vs legal administrator skills

Common senior paralegal skills
  • Legal Research, 13%
  • Litigation, 13%
  • Law Firm, 7%
  • Subpoenas, 5%
  • PowerPoint, 4%
  • Lexis, 3%
Common legal administrator skills
  • Veterans, 10%
  • Litigation, 10%
  • PowerPoint, 6%
  • Law Firm, 5%
  • Legal Research, 5%
  • Management System, 4%