2018: The development of paralegals

2018: The development of paralegals

The role of the paralegal has developed over time, and has become crucial within any law firm. Throughout 2018 we have recruited for many paralegal positions at Page Personnel, and the experience and skills required from organisations have continued to develop alongside the role. From our specialist recruitment consultants, we have gathered insights around paralegal roles from 2018.

How to develop your paralegal

The paralegal role is arguably one of the most significant in terms of training and development. As a paralegal can often take on similar responsibilities of a fully qualified lawyer, if given the right opportunity and guidance by their firm. 
It is becoming increasingly important for paralegals to have comprehensive digital skills. As the industry and world develop with technology at the forefront, it is key for professionals to be able to understand technology and incorporate it into their working day. The role of the paralegal has evolved from being mostly administrative to being directly involved with legal cases on a regular basis. 

Fighting gender bias when recruiting in the legal sector

We saw a lot of discussion in 2018 around gender equality in the workplace, and the legal sector was no exception. With there being a lot of men in leadership roles within legal, it is important for businesses to begin focusing on positive change in terms of women in senior positions. However, we are noticing some changes in the next generation of legal professionals.
 
  • Within the legal profession, female graduates greatly outnumber males. In 2017, women accounted for 68% of law school entries and in the same period, 61% of new solicitors added to the roll were female according to the SRA.
With these numbers, we can expect to see some change in the future. But in the current market we have a lack of women in senior roles, with only 33% of practice partners being female. We can fight this gender bias during the recruitment process by paying attention to the quality of the job descriptions, looking at the candidates’ suitability to the role, hiring by committee, and employing an outside agency to make sure that there are no unconscious bias issues embedded within your recruitment process.
Another way to begin to tackle gender bias within your organisation is to look at your diversity and inclusion programme, and ensure that it is closely joined with your recruitment process. 

Engaging with millennials beyond the interview

Millennials have been identified as the future leaders of our workforce and it is important to attract, retain, and develop these individuals to create future veterans for organisations. Here are three ways to engage with the millennial workforce beyond the interview stage.
1. Offer incentives to your candidates. This allows you access to a pool of candidates that you may have not had previously. This can be in the form of a referral voucher, which incentivises your staff to attract more talent to your business, and at the same time promotes your brand to a wider audience.
2. Be flexible with interviews, and contact hours. Flexible working has become increasingly more important to candidates, they want to work for a business that understands they have a life outside of work, and furthermore, wants them to live it. Offering flexibility in terms of online aptitude tests, video assessments, or Skype interviews highlights to the candidate what kind of flexibility you are willing to offer. 
3. Offer a clear line of progression. The millennial workforce are extremely focused on their future. Offering them a clear line of progression in their career will show them that you intend to develop them professionally.
If you are looking for more information on the legal sector today, or on how to improve your business model and team, browse our array of legal content here. Alternatively, if you are looking to hire for paralegal roles get in touch with one of our specialist recruitment consultants today.