| Topic Name: |
Too Late? |
| Message Name: |
thanks for the clarification |
| Date Posted: |
06/13/2000 |
| In Reply To: |
While Gurdonark's advice is usually right on, in this case, he may be a little behind the times. In New York, practically every prestigious firm's staff of Legal Assistants (or Paralegals) is made up entirely of recent college graduates, none of which have been to paralegal school. Most of them come from Ivy League, or other top tier, schools. I would assume that the system is pretty similar in Chicago. If you came from a top tier school, all you need to do, really, is show up with your resume. You'll get an offer (base salaries are generally 28-35k in NY, with overtime pay being the opportunity to make real bucks). It is also pretty common for paralegals now to stay for only one year, although firms usually prefer if you stay for two or three... but in the current job market they have trouble competing. One warning-- the work is not real interesting, and most paralegals you'll meet get pretty discouraged from going to law school. I disliked my experience as a paralegal and would suggest trying something else out for the year; I don't really thinkbeing a paralegal adds that much to a law school application, but I definitely could be wrong about that. |
| Message: |
I feel a bit jurassic when I realize that
my info is a bit behind the times on paralegalling. Thanks for setting it straight for the original posters.
One hypothetical question was raised for me
by the valid point you make that paralegal work "cures" some folks of the desire to become a lawyer. I wonder if the "cure"
for the legal career itch which some paralegals experience is a healthy learning experience into how law really is, or is it instead a distorted picture given by the arduous task of organizing discovery or closing binders for attorneys?
I've always worked with paralegals pretty extensively. Some are lawyers who never quite got through the bar; others are folks who don't want the responsibility of being "first chair" (and usually, don't want the long hours of being an associate). I can only recall a few instances when folks evolved from paralegalling into law school.
I wonder if my experience that this only rarely happens is representative.
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