Legal Secretary Training in London

The Institute of Legal Secretaries and PAs:
Located in South West England, the Institute of Legal Secretaries and PAs was founded in 1990 to promote the excellence and professional recognition of Legal Secretaries and PAs. We are a professional organisation with Students and Members throughout the UK and overseas. The Institute provides recognised qualifications as evening and online Legal Secretaries Diploma courses and we help people with their legal secretarial careers by giving advice, support and career guidance. Please note that our evening courses are held at Regents College, Regents Park, London but you must contact our head office to request information or enrol.

* To provide recognised legal secretarial qualifications
* To offer help, support, advice and guidance to trainee and experienced Legal Secretaries
* To promote professional recognition of our Members through the quality of their experience, qualifications, standards, skills and expertise
* To encourage Members to advance their skills through continuing professional development
* To unite Legal Secretaries and PAs at all levels of experience

The Roles of a Legal Secretary:
Legal Secretaries assist in the smooth running of law firms by giving administrative support to Lawyers. They are significant members of a team of professionals who work together. The work of a Legal Secretary varies and can be very interesting. They deal with a wide range of challenging legal and business issues, combining their skills with modern technology.

Law firms can specialise in areas such as Criminal Law or Conveyancing, whilst others will deal with a wider range of fields such as Civil Litigation, Matrimonial and Civil Partnership Law, Corporate Law or Probate and Administration, to name but a few.

A Legal Secretary should have excellent secretarial skills with a knowledge of law and legal procedures. They must be computer literate and have a good standard of English. Good communication skills are essential for dealing with clients and meeting deadlines.

* Preparing and typing letters, legal forms and documents
* Organising and filing correspondence, legal forms and documents
* Answering telephone calls and taking accurate messages
* Compiling letters or legal documents from dictation
* Preparing Court forms and statements
* Attending Court
* Arranging appointments and meetings
* Liaising with clients
* Sending e-mails and using the Internet

Legal Personal Assistants can perform very similar work to Legal Secretaries, as they have the same legal knowledge and skills, but they work for just one person in a firm. They furnish clients with high quality services and can be the first point of contact, making decisions on behalf of their boss.

Legal PAs take on more responsibility through senior administrative tasks such as marketing or dealing with accounts and budgets. They act in a personal way for their boss and are responsible for managing their personal timetable and diary, together with organising events, engagements and making travel arrangements. Legal PAs are highly depended on by their boss and need to be reliable and committed.

Legal Secretaries Diploma. Evening Courses and Online Courses available. Subjects covered include The English Legal System; The Law of Contract; The Law of Tort; Civil Litigation, Land Law and Conveyancing, Wills, Probate and Adminsitration and Family Law as well as general legal secretarial procedures and a glossary of legal terminology. Please note that our evening courses are held at Regents College, Regents Park, London but you must contact our head office to request information or enrol.

We have a wide range of Students of all ages, nationalities and levels of experience. If you have secretarial skills and are computer literate, then this course is perfect for you.

The National Association of Licensed Paralegals:
The National Association of Licensed Paralegals is the leading professional body for Paralegals. It provides qualifications, licensing and career development for Paralegals and solicitors’ support staff throughout England, Wales and overseas. Legal Secretaries can advance their careers by receiving training from the Association and we highly recommend its courses.

AH Paralegal Training:
AH Paralegal Training is named after its founder Amanda Hamilton LLB (Hons), who is the General Secretary of the National Association of Licensed Paralegals and a senior tutor for the Institute. The company is dedicated to training Paralegals and it provides a practical training course, which is suitable for Legal Secretaries, law students or graduates who want to maximise their employability.

Smart Management Solutions:
SMS has developed effective management solutions for professional practices. Whether it is in-house training, assistance with Lexcel quality standards, franchising or practice costs, it has solutions. The founder, Seamus Ryan, is a qualified Solicitor, Lexcel consultant and is a tutor for the Institute. He helps our Members with their careers by contributing regular articles for our Journal.

Zee Associates:
Zee Associates provides outstanding training and development to clients in the legal, financial and professional business sectors throughout the UK. It is a specialist in training and development for professional secretarial and business support staff, and the trainers contribute regular articles to our Journal to help our Members with their careers.

The Guernsey Training Agency:
The GTA University Centre is a unique organisation which serves the bailiwick of Guernsey through the procurement, facilitation and promotion of high quality training to all sectors of the community. It provides our Legal Secretaries Diploma course to members of the legal community on the island due to popular demand.

The Lawyer:
The Lawyer is the leading UK publication for the legal profession and the Lawyer Conferences provide expert knowledge from the leaders of the legal community. The Institute helps with conference marketing and encourages Members to attend them for continuing professional development.

The Institute provides help if you are looking for work as a Legal Secretary or PA. Members of the Institute can view the latest Legal Secretary and PA vacancies in our Recruitment section. We have partnerships with selected recruitment agencies who have vacancies throughout the country and our Jobs Board features the latest vacancies which have been posted by Solicitors' firms and agencies. Legal Secretaries and PAs are in great demand and can earn good salaries, depending on qualifications and experience.