Are More Paralegals Being Hired Than Attorneys at Law Firms?

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published June 09, 2014

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We asked attorneys in the U.S. if more paralegals are being hired than attorneys at law firms. Two attorneys said no while another attorney said yes. We hope you enjoy their responses as much as we did.
 

More paralegals are being hired than attorneys. In a typical law firm, a lawyer will perform the high level legal analysis and strategy required and then can delegate to paralegals and support staff the tasks that are capable of being performed by that personnel.

-Daniel C. Tighe Esq.
 

Not at our law firm. Our law firm has two attorneys, one paralegal and one legal assistant. From my experience in good established law firms you will notice one paralegal per every attorney.

-John M. O'Brien
United States
John M. O'Brien & Associates, P.C.
https://www.johnobrienlaw.com
 

I would say that the answer is no. Namely because of the poor economy, you can hire an attorney for the same price or even less than a paralegal. Even if you have a paralegal doing attorney's work, they still require additional supervision and they cannot make court appearances. They cannot be billed out at the same rate either. The answer would be different in an area of the law where it is document intensive and all you are talking about is document review.

-Rand Mintzer, Attorney at Law
https://www.mintzerlaw.com/
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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