Choosing a Career in Bankruptcy Paralegal

Bankruptcy paralegals usually work directly assisting the Attorneys and do not offer legal advice to clients unless it is under the direction of the Bankruptcy Attorney. Bankruptcy Paralegals do know how to research the local bankruptcy rules for the courts. The paralegal often uses bankruptcy software to input information and create the forms for court.
 

It’s important that bankruptcy paralegals understand the consequences an entry can have to a petition. This is why the paralegal is more desirable to prepare petitions. It’s critical that petitions are accurate and must be cross checked with the data from the client. When preparing a cross check, a list of possible issues are made to alert for items that might raise a red flag for the attorney.


Paralegals help simplify work at the law firm by freeing the Attorney to take on new clients. Bankruptcy paralegals free other staff in the firm so more work of another nature can be done by the legal secretaries. Here is a list of duties performed by the bankruptcy paralegal:
 

- Must be self-motivated, hard working, and computer literate.
- Be able to communicate with clients as to the status of their case via telephone, gathering information and obtaining records.
- Capable of the administration of a case (submission of documents and, correspond with clients, prepare letters with the Lawyers).
- Track the progress of cases and keep attorney updated on case status.
- People Oriented.

Some bankruptcy paralegals work in corporations. In a corporation there can be work on bankruptcy and other legal litigation issues. The Bankruptcy paralegal duties would be:
 

- monitoring bankruptcy and other court documents,
- preparing and filing proofs of claim, pleadings, fee applications,
- assisting attorneys with research issues sometimes doing claim analysis,
- maintaining task lists to track deadlines,
- assisting with discovery,
- assisting attorneys with preparation for trials, or appeals.

Bankruptcy paralegals need to have good communication and organization skills. A sharp and detail-oriented paralegal will also be able to work independently and multi-task assignments. Computer skills are a must because many lawyers have programs that can generate the forms required by courts.

Bankruptcy paralegals can obtain certification as a paralegal through schooling or by working as a paralegal for a requested number of years. To keep ahead in the market it is wise to get the paralegal certification.

In conclusion, the job outlook for paralegals can be put this way. While case loads go down, bankruptcy cases go up. Bankruptcy for paralegals is hanging in the job market. The salaries range depending on education, experience and location from $39K to $50K. A good bankruptcy paralegal should be able to work for a law firm or a corporation. In either position a detail oriented person with good computer skills will fare well. A keen sense of organization and fantastic communication skills are very important for any paralegal. This type of paralegal work probably has the best outlook for the next five years because it runs in tandem with the economy. It is a good profession to consider.