Paralegals and Legal Assistants
Also called: Legal Assistant, Legal Clerk, Paralegal, Paralegal SpecialistAssist lawyers by investigating facts, preparing legal documents, or researching legal precedent. Conduct research to support a legal proceeding, to formulate a defense, or to initiate legal action.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 9 of its 11 rated tasks, and jobs are projected to shrink 0.3% by 2035. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 2.4% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 7.9 hires for every 10 job openings in professional and business services, which employs about 82% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.7.9 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $47,260 | $38,150 to $63,490 | 5,700 |
| Alaska | $68,700 | $61,100 to $84,880 | 570 |
| Arizona | $61,630 | $48,840 to $79,250 | 7,890 |
| Arkansas | $47,420 | $43,670 to $61,880 | 1,610 |
| California | $77,390 | $60,170 to $98,430 | 47,130 |
| Colorado | $78,190 | $62,560 to $95,070 | 5,620 |
| Connecticut | $63,820 | $50,180 to $80,580 | 5,210 |
| Delaware | $63,110 | $55,190 to $78,360 | 2,480 |
| District of Columbia | $89,750 | $72,240 to $114,920 | 6,400 |
| Florida | $61,000 | $48,230 to $75,780 | 40,950 |
| Georgia | $62,400 | $48,940 to $81,120 | 14,160 |
| Guam | $37,920 | $30,700 to $51,380 | 110 |
| Hawaii | $62,840 | $52,670 to $75,120 | 1,170 |
| Idaho | $49,690 | $43,990 to $62,540 | 2,030 |
| Illinois | $63,670 | $56,160 to $81,970 | 14,130 |
| Indiana | $57,030 | $46,870 to $74,240 | 5,910 |
| Iowa | $54,550 | $47,820 to $66,560 | 2,980 |
| Kansas | $55,000 | $47,000 to $64,170 | 2,210 |
| Kentucky | $59,830 | $47,220 to $70,920 | 3,540 |
| Louisiana | $60,250 | $47,520 to $72,790 | 4,890 |
| Maine | $62,420 | $57,840 to $71,500 | 1,210 |
| Maryland | $65,640 | $51,660 to $84,700 | 6,460 |
| Massachusetts | $77,640 | $62,580 to $96,820 | 7,800 |
| Michigan | $62,170 | $51,280 to $76,820 | 7,730 |
| Minnesota | $75,570 | $56,230 to $83,420 | 7,400 |
| Mississippi | $46,180 | $36,900 to $58,790 | 2,270 |
| Missouri | $61,410 | $47,520 to $75,980 | 7,130 |
| Montana | $57,290 | $48,560 to $66,960 | 1,010 |
| Nebraska | $63,250 | $49,390 to $73,940 | 1,630 |
| Nevada | $64,680 | $55,410 to $76,980 | 3,620 |
| New Hampshire | $62,040 | $53,540 to $77,040 | 1,430 |
| New Jersey | $71,500 | $60,040 to $80,920 | 12,010 |
| New Mexico | $59,840 | $48,130 to $72,520 | 1,740 |
| New York | $68,410 | $57,430 to $94,200 | 34,220 |
| North Carolina | $57,500 | $47,640 to $71,930 | 13,650 |
| North Dakota | $59,430 | $49,290 to $66,120 | 730 |
| Ohio | $60,420 | $49,500 to $77,360 | 9,270 |
| Oklahoma | $53,170 | $40,330 to $61,840 | 3,110 |
| Oregon | $61,490 | $55,490 to $80,950 | 4,870 |
| Pennsylvania | $63,370 | $50,710 to $78,980 | 14,670 |
| Puerto Rico | $38,770 | $35,780 to $47,150 | 1,110 |
| Rhode Island | $56,250 | $44,860 to $66,120 | 2,070 |
| South Carolina | $53,880 | $46,630 to $61,620 | 7,420 |
| South Dakota | $58,320 | $53,730 to $67,200 | 600 |
| Tennessee | $58,820 | $47,270 to $67,470 | 6,080 |
| Texas | $62,310 | $47,410 to $77,740 | 29,540 |
| Utah | $63,220 | $48,790 to $80,160 | 3,250 |
| Vermont | $67,160 | $58,530 to $78,620 | 660 |
| Virgin Islands | $52,140 | $51,510 to $63,790 | 90 |
| Virginia | $63,990 | $56,050 to $81,590 | 10,250 |
| Washington | $79,400 | $62,670 to $100,960 | 9,460 |
| West Virginia | $59,000 | $41,410 to $78,360 | 1,660 |
| Wisconsin | $58,500 | $47,690 to $71,130 | 4,780 |
| Wyoming | $49,490 | $47,390 to $56,420 | 600 |
Nationally: $62,890. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 9 of its 11 rated tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI + software | Prepare affidavits or other documents, such as legal correspondence, and organize and maintain documents in paper or electronic filing system. | Not published |
| Not rated | Prepare, edit, or review legal documents, including legislation, briefs, pleadings, appeals, wills, contracts, and real estate closing statements. | 0.13% |
| AI + software | Gather and analyze research data, such as statutes, decisions, and legal articles, codes, and documents. | 0.02% |
| AI + software | Prepare for trial by performing tasks such as organizing exhibits. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Meet with clients and other professionals to discuss details of cases. | Not published |
| AI + software | Investigate facts and law of cases and search pertinent sources, such as public records and internet sources, to determine causes of action and to prepare cases. | Not published |
See all 12 tasks
| AI + software | File pleadings with court clerks. | Not published |
| AI + software | Direct and coordinate law office activity, including delivery of subpoenas. | Not published |
| Not much | Call upon witnesses to testify at hearings. | Not published |
| AI alone | Arbitrate disputes between parties and assist in the real estate closing process, such as by reviewing title searches. | Not published |
| AI + software | Appraise and inventory real and personal property for estate planning. | under 0.01% |
| AI + software | Keep and monitor legal volumes to ensure that the law library is up-to-date. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 4 of the 12 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 12 tasks fall under 11 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #30 Perform administrative or clerical activities
- #48 Research laws, precedents, or other legal data
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prepare legal or regulatory documents | |||
| Consult legal materials or public records | |||
| Perform administrative or clerical activities | |||
| Research laws, precedents, or other legal data | |||
| Evaluate condition of financial assets, property, or other resources | |||
| Perform court-related or other legal administrative activities | |||
| Discuss legal matters with clients, disputants, or legal professionals or staff | |||
| Monitor resources or inventories |
Show all 11 activities
| Mediate disputes | |||
| Present information in legal proceedings | |||
| Direct legal activities |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- A document or report83%
- An email or message6%
- An explanation or answer2%
- An analysis or summary2%
- Advice or a recommendation0%
How they worked with Claude
75% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for paralegals and legal assistants specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 157,552 moves out
- 1 Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Very high -6.0% 7%
- 2 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 3 Lawyers Very high +4.7% 4%
- 4 Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants Very high +0.0% 3%
- 5 Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Very high -5.2% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 143,684 moves in
- 1 Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Very high -6.0% 8%
- 2 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 4%
- 3 Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Very high -5.2% 4%
- 4 Office Clerks, General Very high -6.0% 4%
- 5 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 19% high school
- 2% postsecondary certificate
- 2% some college
- 20% associate's
- 37% bachelor's
- 10% post-bachelor's certificate
- 10% research doctorate
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 24 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 2% less than high school
- 11% high school
- 20% some college
- 16% associate's
- 41% bachelor's
- 7% master's
- 3% professional degree
- 1% doctorate
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 4,837 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation
2 programs: Legal Studies and Legal Assistant/Paralegal.
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
44.1% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | 0.8% | 19.1% |
| a certification | 16.5% | 5.8% |
| an educational certificate | 18.0% | 2.8% |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeship Finder ↗ DOL lists 1 registered apprenticeship in this occupation (PARALEGAL (Alternate Title: Paralegal Specialist)). Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Paralegals and Legal Assistants” there.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/23-2011.00