Posted by Craig Hamer, chief executive of CILEX (Chartered Institute of Legal Executives)
Hamer: Retention a challenge with paralegals
It is estimated that there are around 250,000 paralegals in the UK, a figure that has grown considerably in recent years.
Many lawyers could not do their jobs without the support of paralegals and for law firms to remain competitive, paralegals need to be central to their business.
The rise of paralegals reflects the changing nature of the sector, with increased automation and the growth of the legal back office. The role of fully qualified lawyers has shifted from the individual delivery of legal services to a situation where lawyers increasingly act as supervisors of the delivery of services.
In the past, paralegals tended to work in a support role and often saw the job as a stepping stone to becoming a qualified lawyer. That is changing and working as a paralegal is now a career in its own right.
There are paralegals who run their own departments and have their own caseloads, others have set up their own businesses. In medium to large-sized firms, there can be large paralegal teams, with 60-100 paralegals, from those new to the role through to very experienced individuals in management roles.
Formal recognition
Until now, however, this valuable group of legal practitioners has lacked a clear career path and recognition of their skills and experience. Not all paralegals want to become lawyers but that doesn’t mean they want to stand still in their careers – they want a status that is commensurate with the knowledge and experience they have built up.
Recognising this, last month CILEX launched CILEX chartered paralegal status, the first formal recognition of paralegals as a distinct profession with their own progressive career pathway.
It is available to professionals who have been working in a legal role for over five years and can demonstrate extensive legal knowledge and competence across key duties and behaviours. It provides career paralegals with a formal status recognising their achievements.
Designed with input from employers, the new status comes with clear standards and independent regulation, supported by a public-facing register to promote public confidence in the delivery of legal services and justify commensurate charging rates.
Valued employees
The market for paralegals is competitive and while some of the bigger name employers may find it easy enough to attract them, retention is a different matter and it’s common for employers to see a high level of churn.
This means losing skills and accumulated knowledge as well as absorbing the high cost of recruitment fees and onboarding new joiners.
Many employers are already working hard to foster a culture that supports paralegals. From our conversations with both law firms and in-house legal departments we know that the introduction of chartered paralegal status presents them with a framework that will enable them to offer a clear career path, helping to motivate, reward and retain talent.
There are also benefits from a client perspective. Clear standards and a public register of chartered paralegals mean law firms and their clients can have clarity and confidence in the skills of their paralegal team. Clients can be assured they are getting what they pay for and are protected from the risks of poor execution and advice.
Paralegals are central to the legal sector and firms and in-house teams should be prioritising investing in this skilled workforce, offering opportunities for development and long-term career pathways that allow career paralegals as well as those on a path to becoming qualified lawyers, the opportunity to thrive.
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