How to become a legal secretary

We are often asked about the best way to become a legal secretary. There are no fixed methods of entry, but some ideas are outlined below.

The work of a legal secretary

In broad terms, legal secretaries give administrative support to lawyers, legal executives and paralegals, and often help with the day-to-day tasks in running a legal firm. Opportunities exist in solicitors’ offices, barristers’ chambers, law courts, local authorities, the police and armed forces, finance houses, insurance companies and estate agents.

Their main duty is to type letters and other legal documents such as wills, contracts, leases and court documents. They often work from notes dictated onto audiotape. As well as audio and copy typing, their other duties may include:

dealing with telephone calls, letters, faxes and e-mails
organising diaries and making appointments
keeping records of costs and controlling petty cash
dealing with enquiries from clients
attending court or police cells with solicitors
delivering and collecting documents
filing and other general clerical work.

Some law firms specialise in areas such as corporate law or criminal law, while others deal with a wider range of legal matters including property, divorce and family law. In local firms, legal secretaries gain a wide range of experience, whilst in larger firms they may specialise in one or two areas of law.

Although it does vary from firm to firm, most legal secretaries work 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. Part-time work, flexi-time or job sharing may be available, and this has become more prevalent in recent years. Legal secretaries are mainly office-based.

Requirements of the role

There are no set entry qualifications to become a legal secretary, but employers usually ask for some GCSE passes, or equivalent qualifications, usually including English. It is possible to enter as an office junior and train on the job, or to join a legal firm after taking a legal secretary course. General secretarial training is sufficient for entry, although specialist legal secretary courses are available.

You will need typing and computer skills, so office experience or word processing qualifications will be useful. Full- and part-time courses in computer skills and secretarial skills are widely available at local colleges.

Most law firms use the Microsoft Office products, so ability with MS Word is normally important, and experience with MS Powerpoint and MS Excel are also likely to be welcomed. A ECDL (European Computer Driving Licence) may help, but is by no means essential.

In terms of skills and interests you should:

have good secretarial skills
be interested in law and business in general
be reasonably computer literate
work accurately and pay attention to detail
be very discreet, as you will be dealing with confidential information
have a good standard of English, spelling and grammar
be able to work to deadlines
have a polite, friendly and professional manner.

Crossing into legal from other secretarial roles

This is quite a common way to get into legal secretarial. Work in a similar sector can help. If - for example - you are from an accountancy environment then you may find the cross over relatively simple. The key points about being a good legal secretary are common across the main law firms. They will be looking for:

Excellent audio typing and copy speeds of 60wpm+ (ideally 70wpm+)
Bright, professional and team spirited.
Good spelling and grammar.

You may find it useful to take a recognised legal secretarial course before looking for work. However, this is not essential if you already have general secretarial skills or experience, as employers may provide specialised training on the job.

One of the best ways to get into the bigger law firms is to join as a ‘float’ secretary. This way you get training in all areas and become a well-rounded legal secretary in no time at all. That’s why most enter as floats and are kept under Personnel’s wing as they develop and blossom into tip-top legal secretaries.

Another excellent way for secretaries to get into legal, is to temp. The hourly rate will normally be a little lower at first, as your agency should explain to the client about your lack of experience in the legal sector. Nevertheless, once you start to pick up experience, your knowledge (and hourly rate!) will soon catch up with that of the others. Once you are confident of your new abilities, you will then be well placed to take a permanent role.

You can also study for a recognised legal secretarial qualification, such as those provided by ILEX, the Insitute of Legal Secretaries, and local colleges.