Legal personal assistants offer administrative and support services to a particular solicitor or barrister. They manage the personal timetable of their boss and can be responsible for a great range of senior administrative matters. They may also have personnel management responsibilities.

Key skills

• organisational skills
• good IT skills
• reliability
• flexibility
• good interpersonal skills.

Training to be a legal PA

The Legal Secretaries Diploma course, designed primarily for secretaries with little or no previous legal knowledge, is run in central London, one evening a week for twelve weeks. The course is also available by distance learning.

Graduate salaries

Salaries vary greatly across the country. An experienced legal personal assistant can earn anything from around £16,000 up to £30,000+ in larger City firms.

Professional bodies

• Institute of Legal Secretaries and PAs