Start Your Law Career with an Online Paralegal Degree

But the fact is, even those in differing fields such as legal secretaries have acquired the moniker of legal assistant, even though their focus usually remains on more administrative tasks such as recordkeeping and correspondence. To confuse things further, many legal assistants and secretaries do perform some of the same jobs as a paralegal.

What, then, are the day-to-day tasks of a paralegal? Essentially, it could be anything that a lawyer assigns to you, as long as it falls outside the scope of directly practicing law. Here's a short list of typical responsibilities:

• Help lawyers prepare for hearings and trials by investigating the facts of a case and conducting research into relevant laws, articles and legal decisions
• Prepare reports, legal arguments, draft motions, tax returns and other documents
• Use specialized computer software for legal research, billing and other tasks
• Conduct investigations and interviews under the lawyer's supervision

Of course, your daily routine will also depend heavily on where you work and whether you earned an online paralegal degree in a particular specialty.

An online paralegal degree can be a great choice if you're looking for a program with flexible hours and the ability to learn outside of a traditional classroom setting. More and more schools are offering accredited online paralegal programs at the certificate, associate's degree and bachelor's degree levels.

Why the focus on accreditation? It isn't simply an issue of prestige, but one of educational value. If you earn your online paralegal degree from an institution that has been properly accredited, you can ensure that it meets U.S. Department of Education standards of quality and rigor.

The factors that affect a paralegal's salary are complex, and include considerations like level of education, how much work experience you have, and what certifications you hold. Even geography is a factor—not surprisingly, salaries tend to be higher in states where the cost of living is greater.

Because a properly trained paralegal can be highly valuable to a business or a law practice, job prospects are expected to be pretty hot—the BLS predicts employment growth of 28 percent over the 2008-18 period, which is much higher than average. However, it's also a very competitive field. Besides earning an online paralegal degree, one of the best ways to increase your marketability and leave the competition behind is to acquire professional certification, such as the Certified Paralegal (CP) credential granted by the National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA).

_{Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010; National Association of Legal Assistants.}