Career profile for Legal Coordinator

What does a Legal Coordinator do?

Legal Coordinators perform secretarial duties using legal terminology, procedures, and documents.

In addition, Legal Coordinators

prepare legal papers and correspondence, such as summonses, complaints, motions, and subpoenas,
may also assist with legal research.

What kind of tasks does a Legal Coordinator perform regularly?

Legal Coordinators are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Prepare, proofread, or process legal documents, such as summonses, subpoenas, complaints, appeals, motions, or pretrial agreements.
Mail, fax, or arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, witnesses, and court officials.
Receive and place telephone calls.
Schedule and make appointments.
Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files.
Make photocopies of correspondence, documents, and other printed matter.
Assist attorneys in collecting information such as employment, medical, and other records.
Draft and type office memos.
Complete various forms, such as accident reports, trial and courtroom requests, and applications for clients.

The above responsibilities are specific to Legal Coordinators. More generally, Legal Coordinators are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work		Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
Working with Computers		Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
Getting Information		Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Performing Administrative Activities		Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates		Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work

Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.

Working with Computers

Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.

Getting Information

Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Performing Administrative Activities

Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

What is a Legal Coordinator salary?

The median salary for a Legal Coordinator is $48,980, and the average salary is $52,750. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Legal Coordinator salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Legal Coordinators earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Legal Coordinators earn less than $29,620 per year, 25% earn less than $37,090, 75% earn less than $65,610, and 90% earn less than $82,270.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Legal Coordinators is expected to change by -21.0%, and there should be roughly 12,000 open positions for Legal Coordinators every year.

Median annual salary: $48,980
Typical salary range: $29,620 - $82,270
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): -21.0%

What personality traits are common among Legal Coordinators?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Legal Coordinator are usually higher in their Conventional and Enterprising interests.

Legal Coordinators typically have very strong Conventional interests. Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Also, Legal Coordinators typically have moderate Enterprising interests. Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Legal Coordinator tend to value Relationships, Support, and Working Conditions.

Most importantly, Legal Coordinators strongly value Relationships. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment.

Second, Legal Coordinators strongly value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Lastly, Legal Coordinators moderately value Working Conditions. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Legal Coordinators must consistently demonstrate qualities such as attention to detail, integrity, and dependability.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Legal Coordinators, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Integrity		Job requires being honest and ethical.
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Cooperation		Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Independence		Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.

Attention to Detail

Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Integrity

Job requires being honest and ethical.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Cooperation

Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Independence

Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.

What education and training do Legal Coordinators need?

Legal Coordinators often have training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Legal Coordinators usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with this occupation.

Educational degrees among Legal Coordinators

1.7% did not complete high school or secondary school
22.9% completed high school or secondary school
33.9% completed some college coursework
18.5% earned a Associate's degree
19.2% earned a Bachelor's degree
3.2% earned a Master's degree
0.6% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Legal Coordinators

Legal Coordinators may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as administrative, law and government, or customer and personal service knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Legal Coordinators might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Administrative		Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Law and Government		Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Customer and Personal Service		Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Computers and Electronics		Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Administration and Management		Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

Administrative

Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

Law and Government

Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

Customer and Personal Service

Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Computers and Electronics

Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Administration and Management

Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

Important Abilities needed by Legal Coordinators

Legal Coordinators must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Legal Coordinators need abilities such as oral comprehension, written comprehension, and written expression in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Legal Coordinators, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Oral Comprehension		The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Written Comprehension		The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Written Expression		The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Near Vision		The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Oral Expression		The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Oral Comprehension

The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Written Comprehension

The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

Written Expression

The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

Near Vision

The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Oral Expression

The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Critical Skills needed by Legal Coordinators

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Legal Coordinators frequently use skills like reading comprehension, writing, and active listening to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Legal Coordinators, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Reading Comprehension		Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Writing		Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Active Listening		Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking		Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Time Management		Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Reading Comprehension

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

Writing

Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Speaking

Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Time Management

Managing one's own time and the time of others.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Legal Coordinator

Legal Coordinator

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