Christopher Mackie: Prospects looking brighter for law firms' support workers

Published on Sunday 25 April 2010 23:04

IN THE recent dark days for Scottish law firms that saw many cut jobs in the face of an unprecedented economic storm, tears were shed over redundancies among younger lawyers and trainees.

But alongside the P45s for newly qualified solicitors and torn up training contracts came terrible news for support staff, who often found themselves in the front line for cuts. Among those affected were dozens and dozens of paralegals, let go to save money, with any slack taken up by qualified solicitors who suddenly found themselves with more time on their hands.

"The initial redundancies were paralegals," says Alison Butters, the joint president of the Scottish Paralegal Association. "Then the solicitors realised they were struggling without them."

She adds: "The solicitors thought they could do the work of the paralegal – particularly in conveyancing where there are a lot of forms to be filled in. But the solicitors realised they had forgotten how to fill in the forms and had to bring them back."

Although not completely out of the woods yet, with summer on the way, things are brightening up for Scottish law firms in general, and the estimated 10,000 Scottish paralegals in particular.

Last week, members of the Scottish Paralegal Association gathered in a Glasgow hotel for their annual conference. They had good reason to be cheerful.

In a little under four months, the UK's first registration scheme for paralegals will be introduced to the Scottish legal profession. Although absolute final details for the scheme have yet to be signed off, it is expected that people working as paralegals with suitable qualifications and experience will be able to apply for registration immediately at the cost of 100.

The programme will lay down a minimum standard for the conduct and training of those that wish to call themselves registered paralegals, offering this often overlooked section of legal support workers some overdue recognition for the professional job they do.

The programme will see members affiliated to the Law Society of Scotland, and the society will work in partnership with the SPA to run the scheme.

According to Ms Butters, the initiative has been a long time coming, and its arrival marks some much needed validation for her colleagues' work, even if their reputation has improved since the association was established in 1993.

"Paralegals were in quite an awkward position at that point," she says. "They were somewhere between a secretary and a solicitor and in a kind of no-man's land. The position has improved. Generally, they have a much higher status and people now understand what a paralegal does. Before, we were called a 'jumped up secretary'."

It is this perception in both the minds of the public and of some of the more dismissive elements of the legal profession, that the programme is designed to address. Although there are formal qualifications for paralegals, these are not compulsory, and the skills of paralegals across the country can, the SPA insist, vary according to what each is expected to do.

"There are still some who are not qualified and shouldn't really be described as paralegals," continues Ms Butters. "That is what we are trying to do with the registered paralegal scheme.

"The scheme will give a recognition of what we are and what we do, and also help the public. A lot of people just don't know what a paralegal is. We assist the solicitor, but we also manage our own cases, see clients and deal with documentation. It is very similar to what a solicitor does, but we have to be supervised."

The registration arrangement, although formalising the role of a paralegal, will still require their work to be supervised and meet solicitors' standards . During the design of the scheme, the key challenge, the bodies insist, was in the definition of the paralegal and solicitor relationship.

The scheme will be introduced in stages, with paralegals holding suitable qualifications and experience initially "grandfathered" into its ranks. Stage two will see other paralegals applying to join if they believe they meet the standards. A committee will be established to look at applications and it will decide on eligibility.

That committee will include lay members, and this engagement with the public is, according to the SPA, crucial in the success of the new role. By applying a universal standard, the group hopes to improve the standing of paralegals among clients, some of whom are still reluctant to deal with someone who is not a lawyer.

"The more people that see the term 'Law Society registered paralegal' on letterheads and so on, the better. It will help drive up standards," says Ms Butters. "Clients will look at other firms and wonder why their paralegals are not registered." She goes on: "There will be paralegals that don't register, but I would hope that the more that do register it will encourage others and it will become the norm."

Will the scheme improve salaries? "Hopefully!" she laughs. "Paralegal salaries have already gone up. There is a much greater recognition of what a paralegal does. This may well drive up salaries, but that is not the aim – the aim is to provide recognition and a career progression."

After implementation, the Law Society will examine how the paralegal qualification and registration could be slotted into the legal training process as a whole, to allow those paralegals that wish a route to qualification as a lawyer. In the meantime, Ms Butters is just thrilled that the scheme is to be introduced.

"SPA have been pushing for years and years to have some form of regulation and recognition for what a paralegal does," she says. It has been a long time coming, and it is really quite exciting."