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Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

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.

Related: Court Reporters & Simultaneous Captioners Court, Municipal, & License Clerks Executive Secretaries & Executive Administrative Assistants Paralegals & Legal Assistants Secretaries & Administrative Assistants

Industries: Professional, Science, & Technical Government

Summary
Details

Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files.
Assist attorneys in collecting information such as employment, medical, and other records.
Prepare, proofread, or process legal documents, such as summonses, subpoenas, complaints, appeals, motions, or pretrial agreements.
Draft and type office memos.
Mail, fax, or arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, witnesses, and court officials.
Receive and place telephone calls.
Schedule and make appointments.
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.
Draft and type office memos.
Make travel arrangements for attorneys.
Make photocopies of correspondence, documents, and other printed matter.
Submit articles and information from searches to attorneys for review and approval for use.
Complete various forms, such as accident reports, trial and courtroom requests, and applications for clients.
Attend legal meetings, such as client interviews, hearings, or depositions, and take notes.
Review legal publications and perform database searches to identify laws and court decisions relevant to pending cases.

Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

59680/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

28.69/hr

Currently Employed

2,930

Yearly Projected Openings

290

Conventional: People interested in this work like activities that include data, detail, and regular routines. They do well at jobs that need:

Integrity
Attention to Detail
Dependability
Cooperation
Cautiousness
Self-Control

Digital cameras
Digital duplicators
Digital voice recorders
Laser fax machine
Microfiche or microfilm viewer components or accessories
Notebook computers
Pagers
Paper shredding machines or accessories
Personal computers
Photocopiers
Pocket calculator
Premise branch exchange PBX systems
Scanners
Special purpose telephones
Typewriters
Word processors

Accounting software
Analytical or scientific software
Calendar and scheduling software
Cloud-based data access and sharing software
Data base user interface and query software
Desktop publishing software
Document management software
Electronic mail software
Expert system software
Human resources software
Information retrieval or search software
Internet browser software
Office suite software
Presentation software
Process mapping and design software
Project management software
Spreadsheet software
Video conferencing software
Web page creation and editing software
Word processing software

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

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Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants

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