A career as a paralegal can have you doing many different things. These include legal research, interviewing clients, legal writing, and dispute mediation and resolution—among many other tasks and responsibilities. Since Paralegal is a licensed profession in Ontario, completing your paralegal training is the first step to tapping into this rewarding career path.
It can sometimes be tricky to know if you would really enjoy a profession. How can you be sure that paralegal training is a good fit? Here are three reasons why paralegal training could be for you.
1. One of Your Strong Points Is Your Organizational Skills and Attention to Detail
One of the biggest signs that you might enjoy a career as a paralegal is if you have strong organization skills. This is a very important quality, since you will need to make sure instructions are followed, important information is well-managed, and that your documents are organized and categorized properly. If you’re someone who enjoys being organized and who likes double-checking facts and details to make sure they’re accurate, then this could be a sign that you might love working as a paralegal.
You will be expected to multitask and handle work from multiple parties at the same time, and your priorities may also suddenly shift while on the job. Being detail-oriented and having strong organizational skills will help you make sure that even under pressure, you maintain a high standard of quality and accuracy. While you don’t necessarily have to be a perfectionist, being the type of person who repeatedly analyzes and proofreads their work before submitting it could benefit you during your paralegal training and beyond.
Becoming a paralegal involves being very detail-oriented while preparing documents
2. You Are a Skilled Researcher
Being able to take many details into account with regards to preparing legal documents and working with clients is important, as not having the necessary legal documents can have an impact on the case’s outcome. Therefore, being a thorough and strong researcher who is extremely detail-oriented is essential while working as a paralegal, particularly given the complex documents you may need to examine and absorb information from. Details within legal documents may be ambiguous in nature, so being able to properly interpret these details and conduct research is important. If you’re a curious person who loves getting to the bottom of things, it could make you a great fit for paralegal training.
Having strong communication skills will also serve you well when working as a paralegal
3. If You’re an Excellent Communicator, Paralegal Training Could Be a Great Fit
Having good communication skills is an important quality for students about to take a paralegal course, as much of a paralegal’s work can involve social interaction. For example, you could find yourself interviewing people, briefing lawyers, writing, arguing your case in front of a judge, helping to resolve disputes, and more throughout your career. These tasks can involve plenty of listening, asking the right questions, and problem-solving. The latter is particularly important, as issues will inevitably arise on the job, and you will want to clear up any ambiguities before proceeding.
Your organizational and research skills are invaluable in preparing the case for your client whereas your communications skills and the ability to think on your feet are critical when you are in court arguing your client's case.
Do you want to get your paralegal diploma?
Contact Algonquin Careers Academy for more information about our program!
