How much does a legal secretaries and administrative assistant make?

The median pay is $26.72 per hour — roughly $55,500 a year, with the real range running from about $17.55/hr (10th percentile) to $44.10/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Do you need a degree to be a legal secretaries and administrative assistant?

The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: medium preparation (Job Zone 3 of 5).

What does a legal secretaries and administrative assistant actually do all day?

Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files. Mail, fax, or arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, witnesses, and court officials. Prepare and distribute invoices to bill clients or pay account expenses.

Office & Administrative

Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants

Perform secretarial duties using legal terminology, procedures, and documents. Prepare legal papers and correspondence, such as summonses, complaints, motions, and subpoenas. May also assist with legal research.

What it pays
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants earn a median of $26.72/hr — about $55,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $17.55/hr; the top 10% earn $44.10/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)

What you'd actually do

Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files.
Mail, fax, or arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, witnesses, and court officials.
Prepare and distribute invoices to bill clients or pay account expenses.
Prepare, proofread, or process legal documents, such as summonses, subpoenas, complaints, appeals, motions, or pretrial agreements.
Make photocopies of correspondence, documents, and other printed matter.
Assist attorneys in collecting information such as employment, medical, and other records.

How you get there

Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: medium preparation (Job Zone 3 of 5).

The feel of the work

The work is mostly indoors. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)

Working for yourself

About 0.5% of legal secretaries and administrative assistants are self-employed.

Who it tends to fit

This work tends to fit people who are organized and detail-focused, take-charge and analytical.

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Quick questions

How much does a legal secretaries and administrative assistant make?: The median pay is $26.72 per hour — roughly $55,500 a year, with the real range running from about $17.55/hr (10th percentile) to $44.10/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Do you need a degree to be a legal secretaries and administrative assistant?: The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: medium preparation (Job Zone 3 of 5).
What does a legal secretaries and administrative assistant actually do all day?: Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files. Mail, fax, or arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, witnesses, and court officials. Prepare and distribute invoices to bill clients or pay account expenses.

Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.

Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.