It’s common for all law firms, regardless of the company’s size and reputation to find the ideal balance between efficiency and cost when it comes to hiring employees. According to Legal Business World, improving profitability also involves examining the number of staff. They say that paying attention to the staff ratio is very important. For instance, creating projections for future employee populations allows a firm to anticipate falling gaps in the occupation or unwanted surpluses of a certain level of a lawyer. Also, it’s often more convenient to hire a paralegal, who is a relatively inexpensive employee, for certain tasks.

In law, paralegals are vital cogs in the whole legal process. Special Counsel underlines the importance of paralegals as they provide efficient and cost-effective deliverables. Corporate paralegals, in particular, are responsible for assisting corporate legal departments in several areas, such as paperwork and court proceedings. Their day-to-day duties involve drafting legal contracts, correspondence, and other documents, while also providing support related to litigation, mediation, and arbitration — in short, they are indispensable. So, here are three of the most obvious signs that your firm needs to hire a paralegal:

1. Trouble managing time

Do you spend lots of time dealing with menial aspects? Simpler tasks like updating your files or doing legal research can be delegated to legal support professionals, like paralegals. Instead, you should be focusing on your assigned casework and generating revenue for your firm, which maximises your earning potential in the long run.

2. Extremely heavy workload

If you’re feeling burdened with unfulfilling work and think that you have too much on your plate, maybe it’s time to slow down and get some help. A survey published by Law.com found that 47 per cent of lawyers planned to hire more employees in the first half of 2019, with legal secretaries and paralegals among the top legal support jobs. By doing so, you’ll be able to make the best use of your legal abilities and even take on more clients without feeling overwhelmed.

3. Unsatisfied clients

It might be a tough pill to swallow, but when clients complain about your services, it could well be the most telling sign that you’re in dire need of help. Having to balance your primary duties along with doing all the paperwork can be especially challenging for lawyers belonging to smaller firms. However, if you don’t hire a paralegal soon to help boost productivity, your clients might decide to take their business to another firm. The good news is that you shouldn’t have too much trouble hiring a paralegal as Reader’s Digest states that “Commercial litigation, insurance defence, and employment law are offering the greatest number of job opportunities at law firms and companies in the coming months into 2020,” encouraging any aspiring paralegals to apply right away.

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Katelyn Thompson is an aspiring writer who enjoys reading and writing about what makes organizations tick. Whether it’s the many people who make up the organization, or the processes that they’re built upon, she loves exploring how these things work and how to improve them.