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07 April 2023 / Amanda Hamilton
Issue: 8020 / Categories: Features , Profession , Career focus , Training & education
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Paralegals: different paths to the law

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A diverse range of opportunities (and a convenient gap in the legal market) awaits those choosing a career as a paralegal, writes Amanda Hamilton
  • Today many people who want a legal career are choosing to become paralegals.
  • Apart from ‘reserved activities’, paralegals can do mostly everything that a solicitor can do.
  • As a paralegal you can provide a cost-effective service, backed by the credibility of being a member of a recognised membership body for paralegals.

Over the centuries in England, it’s been the case that consumers of legal services tend to consider a ‘lawyer’ to be either a barrister or a solicitor. Not so anymore! Many people who want a legal career are choosing to become paralegals.

Paralegals are educated and trained in a similar way to solicitors. Some of them have law degrees, while others have successfully completed nationally recognised paralegal qualifications. They can do mostly everything that a solicitor can do, except the practice of some activities which remain the monopoly of solicitors. These activities

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NEWS
A wave of housing and procedural reforms is set to test the limits of tribunal capacity. In his latest Civil Way column for NLJ this week, Stephen Gold charts sweeping change as the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 begins biting
Plans to reduce jury trials risk missing the real problem in the criminal justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, David Wolchover of Ridgeway Chambers argues the crown court backlog is fuelled not by juries but weak cases slipping through a flawed ‘50%’ prosecution test
Emerging technologies may soon transform how courts determine truth in deeply personal disputes. In this week's NLJ, Madhavi Kabra of 1 Hare Court and Harry Lambert of Outer Temple Chambers explore how neurotechnology could reshape family law
A controversial protest case has reignited debate over the limits of free expression. In NLJ this week, Nicholas Dobson examines a Quran-burning incident testing public order law
The courts have drawn a firm line under attempts to extend arbitration appeals. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed of the University of Leicester highlights that if the High Court refuses permission under s 68 of the Arbitration Act 1996, that is the end
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