I hope you find the following information on Legal Secretarial/PA jobs useful. THE ROLE Legal secretaries assist in all aspects of running a law firm. The legal secretaries jobs can include basic tasks such as word processing, audio-typing and dealing with general clerical work. Some legal secretary work can include meeting clients, arranging meeting and some even attend court or police cells. Legal Secretary jobs can incorporate all areas of law - from criminal and civil law to property, family, corporate, private client and banking. SKILLS and INTERESTS If you are looking for a Legal Secretary job you should:
Have an interest in law
Have excellent secretarial skills
Be PC literate
Be accurate and methodical
Be discreet when dealing with confidential information
Have a good standard of English, spelling and grammar
Work well under pressure and be good a meeting deadlines
Of course, a polite friendly manner helps!
A mix of these skills would provide a solid foundation for anyone looking for jobs as a legal secretary Click here for Legal Secretary jobs QUALIFICATIONS There are no formal qualifications to becoming a Legal Secretary, athough a high standard of general education is required. To become a Legal Secretary office and administration experience is useful as is some existing knowledge of the law. Career Development Employers often offer on the job training. There are different pathways that lead to legal secretarial qualifications: ** The Institute of Legal Secretaries and PAs The Institute of Legal Secretaries and PAs offer a diploma thats has been recognised as the most comprehensive qualification for Legal Secretaries. The diploma is extremely useful if you are looking for jobs as a Legal Secretary. The syllabus for the general diploma is divided into five main units: Outline of the English Legal System
Outlines of the Law of Contract and the Law of Tort
Conveyancing and an outline of Land Law
Civil Litigation
Succession (Wills, Probate and Administration)
The Institute of Legal Secretaries and PAs also offers courses for Legal Secretaries who would like to specialise in one are of law. The subjects covered are:
- Civil Litigation
- Company and Corporate Law
- Conveyancing
- Criminal Law and Practice
- Matrimonial Law and Family Practice Succession
Click here for Institute Of Legal Secretaries Website and further information: www.institutelegalsecretaries.com ** ILEX Legal Secretaries Certificate & Diploma ILEX offer a Legal Secretaries Certificate (Level 2) and a Legal Secretaries Diploma (Level 3) The ILEX Paralegal Programmes (ILEXPP) for Legal Secretaries are now considered the benchmark for those aspiring to or working in a legal environment as secretaries or personal assistants. Reflecting the National Standards in Administration, the programmes offer: a flexible route, no entry requirements (although a Grade C or above in English Language GCSE is desirable), a choice of when and where to study, task based assignments which are all accompanied by up to date training manuals.'' The ILEX Legal Secretaries Certificate covers the following areas: Legal Word Processing
Administration in the Legal Environment
Communication Skills in the Legal Environment
Information Processing in the Legal Environment
The ILEX Legal Secretaries Diploma covers the following areas:
Advanced Legal Word Processing
Advanced Administration in the Legal Environment
Advanced Communication Skills in the Legal Environment
Advanced Information Processing in the Legal Environment
Click here for ILEXPP Website and further information on the ILEX Tutorial (Training to be a Legal Secretary) Web pages ** OCR (RSA) Legal Word Processing OCR(RSA)offers specialised qualifications in legal text and legal word processing. The course is for those with previous word processing experience who wish to specialise in legal work. This programme is ideal for those who are in employment or wish to gain employment in the legal sector. You will be taught about the production of a range of documents in a legal context. Legal styles and formats. Legal terminology and English grammar are also covered Legal Text Processing is part of the OCR (Oxford, Cambridge and RSA) suite of qualifications in text processing which are widely recognised by employers as benchmark qualifications in text processing. Candidates who are successful in achieving accreditation will be able to extend their range of text processing skills at intermediate level and progress to different optional units within the suite of units at Level 2 or to progress to the OCR Text Processing Advanced (Level 3) qualification. Legal Secretaries work in all areas of law from solicitors offices, barristers chambers through to law courts, police stations and within in house legal teams. It is possible to start as a legal secretary and work towards becoming a legal executive, paralegal or a licensed conveyancer. You could even study for a law degree. |
