Write A Better Paralegal Resume With These Tips

Stunning Legal Assistant Resume Examples for This Year

Updated August 24, 2022643

Legal assistants are critical for legal professionals to succeed in their jobs. Here’s how you can write an even better legal assistant resume.

Legal Assistant Resume Example

As a legal assistant, you’ll help attorneys with their cases. Depending on your state, the law firm you’re working with and your education, you may do more or less but no matter what you’re doing, you need to showcase specific skills. Here’s how you can write an amazing resume as a legal assistant.

What to Highlight in a Legal Assistant Resume

Legal assistants should highlight both routine skills and more difficult skills, as both of these skills are necessary for your job. Remember to highlight soft and hard skills; as an assistant, you’ll regularly be working around the office and skills like teamwork and communication are essential.

Structure of a Legal Assistant Resume

The first step to writing a great resume is to choose the right resume format. You’ll choose between the chronological format, the functional format and the combination format. The format you choose will depend on what you specifically want to highlight. Once you’ve decided on a format, you can continue and choose content for each of your resume sections.

Header

In your header, include your contact information. This can include your phone number, email address and professional social media links, like your LinkedIn.

Resume summary/objective

The two- or three-sentence paragraph at the very top of your resume is your summary or objective. A resume summary is best for people with lots of experience, showcasing that experience and your biggest achievements. A resume objective is better for those with less experience, showcasing your skills and talent.

Skills

The skills section for a legal assistant job must include hard skills and soft skills. These skills allow you to work in a law office in a number of different contexts. Here are a few bullet points to keep in mind as you’re developing your legal assistant skills:

Reading legal documents
Scheduling depositions
Making phone calls
Legal research skills
Finding case files and court filings
Communication skills
Time management
Preparing pleadings, subpoenas and motions
Providing administrative support
Writing affidavits
General document management
Interpersonal skills
Understanding legal terminology
Managing spreadsheets
General trial preparation

The best way to approach resume writing is to look at the job listing before you start writing your skills, then reflect the listed skills to the hiring manager.

Work history

You may not need years of work experience to get a job as an entry-level legal secretary, but it can help to have work experience in your field. List up to ten years of experience in your specific field; a paralegal looking to work for a law firm will do best listing experience with other law firms, for example.

Education

In the education section, a paralegal or legal assistant should have a two-year associate degree, usually in paralegal studies. You may also choose to get a bachelor’s degree to improve your professional resume. You can also include other certifications, showing that you’re legally allowed to practice as a legal professional in your state.

Do’s and Don’ts for a Legal Assistant Resume

Do:

Include any software-specific experience you have. For example, if you’ve worked extensively with LexisNexis or Microsoft Office Excel, that can be a great addition to your resume.
Use as many metrics and numbers as you can. Instead of “Worked with many employees,” use “Administrative assistant for 50 employees concurrently.”
Mention specific types of cases you’ve handled previously. Phrases like “Won death penalty case” or “Defended against $1 million suit” can indicate your successes.

Don’t:

Include professional experience that’s no longer relevant. A food service job from over a decade ago isn’t considered relevant experience if you have recent legal experience.
Create a resume completely from scratch on your own. The ResumeNerd resume builder is a great tool if you’ve never created a resume.
Include identifying information for any past clients. This can violate NDAs and is generally seen as unprofessional.

FAQ: Legal Assistant Resumes

Do I need to include a cover letter for a legal assistant application?

When writing a job application, adding a cover letter is always a good idea. A cover letter is a great way to expand upon everything you’ve already discussed in your resume, which can make it a helpful addition to your resume when trying to argue why you’re the right person for a job posting. Plus, you can use the ResumeNerd cover letter builder to make it easier.

How can I write a legal assistant resume without a lot of experience?

The good news is that a legal assistant position is often one of the positions you’ll apply to if you want to get experience. That means many recruiters know that legal assistants won’t have too much experience. You can also include volunteer work, internships and even academic experience, allowing you to showcase your skills without much experience.

How do I change my legal assistant resume to apply to different jobs?

Before you apply to a new job, you must tailor your resume to create the perfect resume for that specific job. Look through the job description for resume keywords, which may include the skills and qualifications mentioned by the description itself. This helps you create a legal resume perfectly tailored to the job you’re searching for.

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About The Author

Cindi Cervone Carlson

Cindi Cervone Carlson is a Senior Vice President for Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. Cindi is responsible for developing, delivering, and implementing a dynamic, world-class organization dedicated to delivering outplacement consulting, training, support, and executive coaching. Cindi started her career at Challenger as a client who had lost her job. Over the past nine years, she has risen from an entry-level, part-time professional to Senior Vice President.