Paralegals take the form of fee earners who are not admitted to the roll of solicitors and who are therefore not members of the Law Society unless they are LPC students or have completed their LPC and are thus, student members. The range of work undertaken by paralegals differs vastly, from career paralegals conducting their own caseload, to simple case support. Sometimes, people view ‘paralegaling’ as an alternate way into the legal profession i.e. working as a paralegal in the hope the employer will be happy with the performance and will offer a training contract. This also includes the practice of working as a paralegal during a probationary period mandated by the firm, prior to actually being offered a training contract in itself.

Our paralegal service is similar to our training contract service. If you are accepted for registration on this service we will work to help you obtain a paralegal post. Obtaining a suitable paralegal post can sometimes be as difficult as getting a training contract hence why we also offer this service. We feel we can help clients as a result of our contacts, reputation, and knowledge in the legal, recruitment and consultancy sectors. We offer aspects of services similar to career consultants but we also work with our clients to target and market their details to a large number of firms. Due to our extensive resources we are able to identify the broad legal job market and subsequently ‘market’ our client’s skills and qualifications in the appropriate manner. We target thousands of firms across England and Wales giving our clients the best possible opportunity to obtain a post. We are able to target over 90% of all firms and use our tried and tested methods to help our clients obtain results. Our consultants are not simply office based, we visit organisations directly, attend legal recruitment events and actively follow the market for opportunities. Due to our successful formula and prudent candidate selection procedure this enables us to offer the highest levels of service.

Process

You are not required to have passed the LPC or to have obtained a law degree in order to register but we do expect you to have a legal background i.e. education or experience. Our registration requirements for this service are less stringent than the training contract service. If you are accepted for registration we then begin the preparation procedure almost instantaneously. You will immediately be assigned a consultant who will work on your ‘case’. Please ensure that this is the specific service you require as the registration fee is non refundable. After registration you will be sent a comprehensive information and assessment pack. This pack will include a brief form for you to fill and return to us via email, we will supply you with industry standard templates and samples for guidance. We want to ensure we know all about you in order to help you find a post. Your existing CV, covering letter / notes and related information will be reviewed by your consultant to ensure it complies with law firm requirements. Suitable amendments will be made with your consent. We will also provide you with information and exercises to equip you for interview situations, this information will cover all important areas i.e. aptitude / psychometric tests, handling legal interviews, after interview tips etc. We expect all our registered clients to study and apply this information correctly.

After the review and evaluation process we will then begin the important ‘marketing’ and job targeting phase. We will target 1000 firms to give you an outstanding opportunity to obtain a post. After this process our work will conclude. We will however maintain contact to inform you of interview matters, queries and all other relevant information.

Other key information (paralegal service)

i. We are the only organisation in the UK with a team of career consultants, legal professionals and lawyers working to offer such a dedicated service.

ii. We ask for patience during the first month as this is a crucial period after registering. Once the review and evaluation process is completed, we will then target 1000 firms. Due to the volume of work that this requires we complete this process within 2 weeks.

iii. When you register on the paralegal service we will help you tailor your details to target paralegal posts. Please note that some employers may decide (having interviewed you) to offer you a different post. It is important to realise that you are not obliged to accept any post and should negotiate if you are unhappy with any terms of your employment.

iv. We are offering all our services in one unique package designed to help you get a paralegal post. We realise the academic and financial difficulties law entrants have faced and have thus made our fee affordable to applicants who are accepted for registration. Cost of the paralegal service is £ 195.

Next step

To register your interest in this service please email us your CV and a brief letter highlighting your key achievements and any other information you feel is relevant to support your application. In the email heading ensure you state 'Paralegal service application'. Your CV and letter will be forwarded to a consultant and you will receive a reply within 2 working days. Please note that your CV will not be fully reviewed / evaluated, your application is merely being considered at this stage.

Email: applications@getatrainingcontract.com

The decision whether to allow an applicant to register on the paralegal service depends on various factors namely minimum requirements, suitability, economic cycle trends etc. We receive hundreds of applications and we want to ensure we are able to help suitable candidates, therefore please do not be discouraged if you are not accepted for registration. You are allowed to reapply after 3 months (up to a maximum of 2 applications a year). If you are accepted we will forward a link to your e-mail address to complete the registration / fee payment.

Do not apply until you have seen our FAQs page, this will highlight further information and provides explanation of terms.