Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants: Career Overview
Perform secretarial duties using legal terminology, procedures, and documents. Prepare legal papers and correspondence, such as summonses, complaints, motions, and subpoenas. May also assist with legal research.
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What Tasks Do Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Take On?
The day-to-day responsibilities of legal secretaries and administrative assistants span:
- Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files.
- Mail, fax, or arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, witnesses, and court officials.
- Prepare and distribute invoices to bill clients or pay account expenses.
- Prepare, proofread, or process legal documents, such as summonses, subpoenas, complaints, appeals, motions, or pretrial agreements.
- Make photocopies of correspondence, documents, and other printed matter.
- Assist attorneys in collecting information such as employment, medical, and other records.
- Complete various forms, such as accident reports, trial and courtroom requests, and applications for clients.
- Receive and place telephone calls.
Key Skills and Knowledge
Effective legal secretaries and administrative assistants draw on a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Key Skills
These are the skills most important for this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Core Knowledge
Related Job Titles
This career also goes by job titles like:
- Accredited Legal Secretary
- Certified Legal Secretary Specialist
- Confidential Secretary
- Law Firm Administrator
- Law Office Assistant
- Law Secretary
- Legal Administrative Assistant (Legal Admin Assistant)
- Legal Administrator (Legal Admin)
How Many Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Are There?
The U.S. employs around 730,280 legal secretaries and administrative assistants working in the United States today. Employment is projected to grow by +10.5% over the projection horizon.
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Pay
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $55,524 |
| Hourly median | $26.69 |
| 10th percentile | $37,806 |
| 25th percentile | $46,665 |
| 75th percentile | $64,383 |
| 90th percentile | $73,242 |
Compensation varies based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $101,170 |
| New York | $74,400 |
| Delaware | $63,740 |
| Maryland | $63,110 |
| Rhode Island | $61,970 |
| Connecticut | $61,440 |
| Massachusetts | $61,440 |
| California | $61,320 |
| Minnesota | $61,300 |
| New Jersey | $60,400 |
| Washington | $59,680 |
| Alaska | $59,600 |
| Illinois | $58,070 |
| Hawaii | $57,030 |
| Colorado | $56,560 |
| Michigan | $56,030 |
| Oregon | $55,590 |
| Florida | $53,790 |
| North Dakota | $53,460 |
| Nevada | $51,540 |
| Virginia | $51,010 |
| Georgia | $51,000 |
| Maine | $49,950 |
| New Hampshire | $49,880 |
| Pennsylvania | $49,330 |
| Texas | $49,150 |
| Wisconsin | $48,980 |
| Guam | $48,660 |
| Arizona | $47,990 |
| New Mexico | $47,900 |
| Nebraska | $47,770 |
| Missouri | $47,650 |
| Oklahoma | $47,440 |
| Indiana | $47,260 |
| Vermont | $47,050 |
| West Virginia | $46,940 |
| Ohio | $46,710 |
| Alabama | $46,390 |
| Virgin Islands | $46,180 |
| Utah | $46,050 |
| South Dakota | $46,020 |
| Tennessee | $44,280 |
| Mississippi | $43,830 |
| North Carolina | $43,830 |
| Montana | $43,230 |
| Wyoming | $42,590 |
| Louisiana | $42,560 |
| Idaho | $41,920 |
| Kansas | $41,640 |
| South Carolina | $39,670 |
| Arkansas | $39,400 |
| Kentucky | $38,330 |
| Puerto Rico | $32,810 |
Pay by U.S. Region
Compensation for legal secretaries and administrative assistants differ across the country. The following regions pay the most:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Middle Atlantic | $68,180 | 19.3% | 1.45 |
| Far Western US | $60,391 | 20.1% | 1.26 |
| New England | $58,811 | 4.1% | 0.95 |
| Great Lakes | $53,157 | 13.2% | 1.07 |
| Rocky Mountains | $49,559 | 2.8% | 0.73 |
| Southwest | $48,651 | 10.2% | 0.86 |
| Southeast | $47,348 | 22.8% | 1.02 |
| Plains States | $44,700 | 5.8% | 0.88 |
Where the Jobs Cluster
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | CA | $106,130 | 990 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | DC | $88,600 | 2,800 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | CA | $81,210 | 2,810 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | CT | $75,620 | 530 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | NY | $74,400 | 14,530 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT | CT | $73,740 | |
| North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL | FL | $67,980 | 510 |
| Manchester-Nashua, NH | NH | $67,300 | 190 |
Industry Breakdown
Most legal secretaries and administrative assistants work in these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 125,840 | $53,690 |
| Finance and Insurance | 2,420 | $59,990 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 1,730 | $43,470 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 1,140 | $65,690 |
| Other Services (except Public Administration) | 950 | $55,910 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 750 | $37,370 |
| Educational Services | 520 | $61,270 |
| Information | 350 | $74,260 |
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants work in the following industries:
Software Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Use
- Document management software: Adobe Acrobat (hot technology)
- Accounting software: Intuit QuickBooks (hot technology)
- Data base user interface and query software: Microsoft Access (hot technology)
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
- Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
- Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook (hot technology)
- Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint (hot technology)
- Process mapping and design software: Microsoft Visio (hot technology)
- Word processing software: Microsoft Word (hot technology)
Work Environment
The work environment for legal secretaries and administrative assistants is shaped by the following characteristics:
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
- Contact With Others
- Telephone Conversations
- Importance of Repeating Same Tasks
Getting Started in This Career
Entry-level legal secretaries and administrative assistants positions require an associate’s degree as the typical entry-level education. This occupation sits in Medium Preparation Needed (Job Zone 3), reflecting the level of preparation typically expected.
Similar Occupations
Similar Occupations
- Compliance Officers (Supplemental)
- Lawyers (Supplemental)
- Judicial Law Clerks (Supplemental)
- Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers (Supplemental)
- Paralegals and Legal Assistants (Primary-Short)
- Court Reporters and Simultaneous Captioners (Primary-Short)
- Medical Records Specialists (Primary-Long)
- Private Detectives and Investigators (Supplemental)
Where to Study
Future legal secretaries and administrative assistants typically earn programs in:
Legal Professions and Studies
1 programs across 1 majors
Sources
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 43-6012.00 (Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants).
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