Legal Secretaries
Overview
Introduction
Legal secretaries, sometimes called litigation secretaries or trial secretaries, assist lawyers by performing the administrative and clerical duties in a law office or firm. Legal secretaries spend most of their time writing legal correspondence, preparing legal documents, performing research, and answering incoming calls and e-mails. Legal secretaries read and review many law journals to check for any new court decisions that may be important for cases pending at that time. Legal secretaries also maintain files an...
Quick Facts
Median Salary
Employment Prospects
Minimum Education Level
Experience
Skills
Personality Traits
Earnings
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the average salary for legal secretaries was approximately $50,680 in May 2023. Salaries ranged from less than $34,780 to more than $82,890. Fifty percent of legal secretaries earned between $41,450 and $66,510. Legal secretaries who were employed by local government agencies earned average annual salaries of $54,000, while those who worked for insuran...
Work Environment
Legal secretaries spend the majority of their day behind their desk at a computer. They spend lengthy periods of time typing or writing, which may cause hand and wrist strain. Long hours staring at a computer monitor may also cause eyestrain. Legal secretaries work with lawyers, other legal secretaries, paralegals, clients, court personnel, library personnel, and other support workers. Senior l...
Outlook
The U.S. Department of Labor predicts that employment for legal secretaries will decrease 5 percent between 2023 and 2033 because technology has replaced much of the work they once performed, including document filing and preparation.
The staffing firm Robert Half predicts a more optimistic employment outlook for legal secretaries, including the career in its 2025 list of the hottest leg...