While paralegals are knowledgeable and spend time communicating with clients, they are not lawyers. Therefore, paralegals should never give legal advice. When interacting with clients, they must communicate in a way that is not considered or construed as legal advice. Consider using these legal technology tools to help your law firm and paralegals save time and be more efficient in legal research. Similarly, it is not for a paralegal to establish a lawyer`s relationship with a client, so he or she cannot accept or dismiss a case. Interacting with clients is one of the main tasks of a paralegal. Paralegals can help clients feel heard and informed about their case without taking the lawyer`s time. This can go a long way in providing a positive, customer-centric experience. Since paralegals are not lawyers, they are generally not allowed to represent clients in court or make statements. A paralegal is not responsible (or authorized) for determining the fees to be charged by a lawyer. Paralegals can be asked to draft all kinds of legal documents.

In companies where paralegals make up the bulk of a legal department, paralegals are often tasked with drafting contracts that form the basis for agreements between organizations, as well as employee contracts and other legal agreements. As outlined in the 2020 Legal Trends Report, lawyers and lawyers need to address the affordability of legal services. By becoming more efficient as a law firm, you may be able to reduce the cost of your services and serve a wider network of clients, especially those who previously couldn`t afford your services. Hiring a paralegal or paralegal team can help improve the efficiency of your law firm while providing better client-focused service to your clients. Note: The information in this article applies only to U.S. practices. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal, commercial or accounting advice. Under no circumstances can paralegals provide legal advice. Legal advice means saying or advising a client on what they should do in a particular situation, and it can also mean giving the client all the information that would lead them to make a legal decision for their case. Paralegals cannot give advice because they are not regulated by the state bar association.

Although they cannot provide legal advice, they can still refer the client to a lawyer who can help. Decades ago, when the role of a paralegal included more administrative tasks such as organizing and filing, it was much less common for the paralegal to have direct contact with clients. Today, paralegals have much more contact with clients, which opens up the potential problem of unauthorized legal practice. The unauthorized exercise of law is the provision of services that should only be provided by the professional judgment of lawyers. There are sanctions associated with the unauthorized exercise of the law, and the unauthorized exercise of the right is considered a first-degree offense. Lawsuits and penalties can include quotes ranging from $25 to $500. There have been several cases in which paralegals have been prosecuted for unauthorized exercise of their rights. In San Bernardino County, a Supreme Court justice indicted 40 independent paralegals for unauthorized exercise of rights in 1997.

The Florida Bar Association sued a former legal secretary and had her imprisoned for unauthorized exercise of that right. In Oregon, a paralegal who operated a paralegal service was sued by the state for unauthorized practice of law, and a lawyer who allowed his paralegal to represent a church unsupervised at a zoning hearing was charged with unauthorized practice of the law. As a general rule, from the beginning of a paralegal`s mandate with an organization, he is asked to carry out some form of document creation, the particularities of this drafting generally depending on the type of organization. Now that we have settled the issue of « what paralegals can do » under the supervision of a lawyer, let`s take a look at what a paralegal is not allowed to do. Aba model guidelines for the use of paralegal services can be a useful resource. We will describe the main points below: The important role paralegals play in drafting contracts and other legal documents has been cited by some as a particular reason why paralegals should be regulated more than they are. Even though a paralegal cannot provide legal advice, accept a case, or represent a client in court, they work under the lawyer`s watchful eye and play a major role in communicating between the lawyer and the client. While the paralegal serves as a link between the client and the lawyer, it is not intended to provide the client with confidential information that will have a material impact on the case. One of the most interesting things a paralegal can do is interview witnesses.

Interviewing witnesses has the potential to be very exciting. Especially if the witnesses are part of an interesting or exciting case. Other investigations that need to be conducted for the case are also an essential part of the paralegal`s work. The task of interviewing and research is usually delegated to the paralegal and is one of the many reasons why people enter the paralegal profession. When a person completes their studies as a paralegal, they are able to perform essential legal tasks and take on more complex legal responsibilities. Stand out from the thousands of lawyers looking for a job. Learn best practices and tips for using your online presence to attract legal recruiters. One of the tasks a paralegal can do is to process paperwork and prepare legal documentation. Paperwork can consist of contracts, pleadings, court filings, shareholder agreements, and many other types of documents. A paralegal is involved in the drafting of various legal agreements and forms. Paralegals are also allowed to reformulate documentation and assist lawyers in entering into agreements that will be used in court. Paralegals are allowed to share facts with a client in their capacity as an employee of a law firm.

In this way, they can inform a client of the date of a hearing or the next step in the legal process. But a paralegal cannot give an opinion. For example, a paralegal is prohibited from telling a client how they assess their chances of winning a case and is prohibited from formulating a legal strategy on behalf of the client. Only lawyers have the right to give their informed opinion on a client`s chances of winning a case or giving strategic advice. If a paralegal provides legal advice in the course of their work for a law firm, the firm could be vulnerable to prosecution if the client takes the advice and it hurts them. Technological tools can also help automate the legal research process and make it more efficient. Applications to consider include: Conducting interviews with clients and witnesses is an important (and often interesting) task that a paralegal can take on. As always, it is important that paralegals adhere to the same rules of confidentiality for clients as a lawyer. A qualified paralegal may also have excellent interview and interpersonal skills to assist with interviews.

Here are some of the key services a supervised paralegal can offer to improve your practice: There are some do`s and don`ts when it comes to being a paralegal. There are certain things for which the paralegal is responsible and certain things for which the lawyer is responsible. For legal reasons, a paralegal is limited in the tasks she can perform while working in a law firm. While there are restrictions on what a paralegal is allowed to work on, the truth is that many paralegals do much of the lawyer`s job. Lawyers trust that paralegals understand the law and understand the types of documents that are being prepared. A paralegal is allowed to perform certain legal tasks as long as a lawyer carefully supervises his or her work. However, paralegals are never allowed to provide legal advice to clients, set fees or accept cases. You must also make it clear to the other party that you are not a lawyer. Personal injury paralegals assist lawyers in all aspects of the litigation, from the beginning of the case to the appeal.

Below is information on the role of paralegals in the area of personal injury, including day-to-day responsibilities, challenges and tips. Customer Service Learn more. Paralegals are allowed to help clients fill out legal forms, but there are some limitations. A paralegal can enter the information the client gives them in a legal form, but they cannot tell the client what to enter into the form. This is very important because some paralegals might be tempted to share their knowledge about what should be included in a form, but it could mean that they are dealing with the unauthorized practice of law. When a document is written, a lawyer will often check with the paralegal or if there will be if the document being drafted finds the approval of a lawyer, the lawyer signs it. Paralegals are allowed to draft legal documents, but these documents must be reviewed by a lawyer before they can be shared with anyone outside the law firm. If a lawyer has a good working relationship with their paralegal, the ability to draft legal documents could save them a lot of time.

But the time saved is only valuable if the law takes the time to review these documents and make the necessary changes. There is a long list of things paralegals cannot do. One of the most important things paralegals are not allowed to do is to exercise that right. No one can practise as a lawyer without a licence, including a paralegal.