Courting Success

Does the excitement of courtroom drama, as the legal team saves the life of the defendant in a last minute twist of the case, have particular appeal for you? Can you see yourself as a vital part of that legal team?

Of course the previous scenario is enhanced, just like on television. And even though most court cases are not such cliff-hangers, a career as a paralegal can be an interesting and rewarding one.

As a paralegal, you would assist an attorney in a law office, corporation, health care organization, or government agency, and you would perform specifically delegated legal work. According to Douglas Kolly, an attorney and director of OCC’s paralegal programs, grads may work in a wide range of settings including on the staffs of such diverse entities as the Legal Aid Society, a prosecutor’s or judge’s office, even with the Army Corps of Engineers.

Think of paralegals as “attorney extenders,” who aid lawyers by taking on tasks that do not require a law degree, but do require specific training. These tasks include legal research, drafting legal forms and document analysis. Paralegals often work in areas of “transactional law like real estate and contracts,” Kolly says. “Or they may work with attorneys who practice family law or criminal law, who handle divorce or bankruptcy cases, or who administer trusts and estates. In larger law offices, paralegals may work in one very specialized area. In smaller offices, their work is often more general.”

Prospects for job growth in this area are promising. Even with the current economic slowdown, Kolly says there’s still a market for paralegals out there. Employment Outlook says that nationally the paralegal profession will be one of the fastest growing through 2006.

Salary.com (a web site that tracks pay for numerous job classifications)  shows Detroit-area starting salaries for paralegals are typically around $35,000 a year, and can reach nearly $80,000 with an advanced degree and several years of job experience.

Oakland Community College offers both an Associate Degree in Applied Science with a paralegal major, and a post-baccalaureate certificate program for students who already have a bachelor’s degree in another field.

Both programs require specialty core courses that can be completed in one year and include Legal Research and Writing, Litigation and Substantive Law, and Trial Preparation and Evidence. Kolly says the class students seem to enjoy the most is Trial Preparation. Conducted at the Oakland County courthouse, this class takes advantage of the  judicial skills and knowledge of Oakland County judges Fred Mester and Dan O’Brien.

OCC programs, accredited by the American Bar Association, are very practical, Kolly says. Students have  the opportunity to develop excellent research skills and are prepared to take the exams for a certificate of mastery in Lexus, the search mechanism used by many lawyers. “Our students also have access to LOISLAW.com, another important legal research tool,” Kolly says.

To advance in the field, many paralegals go on to acquire bachelor’s degrees; others use this legal background as preparation for law school, while others seek certification from professional associations.

And just in case you’re thinking that becoming a paralegal is something only a young person can do, Kolly says you should think again: “Many of our students are in their 40s or 50s, and many are women. Quite a number of them are already working in the legal field in some way and want to upgrade their skills.”

Others, like Sylvia Ross, DDS, are looking for a total change of career. The 52-year-old periodontist, who practiced in Detroit for 25 years,  sold her practice and retired a couple years back. She works one day a week as a dental consultant for Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Michigan, a position she’s enjoyed for 17 years. But Dr. Ross wanted to do something more after retiring. She considered law school, but decided instead on second career as a paralegal. Dr. Ross completed her core courses, earning an OCC paralegal certificate in December 2002. Through those classes, she discovered she “really likes doing legal research.” Dr. Ross is currently exploring her options in her new field: “I’m am surprised at the many types of businesses and organizations who employ paralegals; you find them everyplace from attorneys’ offices to hospitals to Comcast Cable.”

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