| There will probably come a time in your life when | | | | The most important issue here is why hire an |
| you will need or want to seek legal advice or legal | | | | attorney when a good paralegal can do the same |
| services. One of the first questions you might ask | | | | and give you more personal attention. You may not |
| yourself is can a paralegal assist you rather than an | | | | know that when hiring an attorney, he or she will |
| attorney? The answer is yes. Hiring a paralegal will | | | | give a lot, if not all, of the work to their in-house |
| save you time, money and stress. So, if you need | | | | paralegal. So costs can run sky high because you're |
| legal assistance but don't have the money required to | | | | actually paying for the attorney and his or her |
| hire an attorney, consider hiring a paralegal. | | | | paralegal. |
| First you should know that a paralegal cannot give | | | | Most, not all, paralegals work for a law firm or in |
| you any legal advice. For that you'll need an attorney. | | | | house counsel of a corporation. Then there are |
| But if you're looking to find someone to start or | | | | paralegal services you can hire from the internet, |
| complete legal forms or do legal research and much | | | | phone book, etc. Most paralegal services offer a free |
| more, then your most cost effective alternative | | | | consultation so your legal issues can be discussed |
| would be to hire a paralegal. Paralegals offer a | | | | between you and the paralegal. This type of service |
| practical solution at a fraction of the cost of what | | | | allows you, the client, to talk about your legal issues |
| attorneys charge. | | | | without spending a dime. |
| Paralegals have a strong background in the way the | | | | When you decide to hire a paralegal, a contract will |
| legal system works allowing them to perform in a | | | | be drawn up citing what work will be performed by |
| variety of practice areas. Here are some just to | | | | the paralegal, the period of time your legal issue will |
| name a few: | | | | be completed and at what cost. All of this |
| · Bankruptcy | | | | information is determined before any money changes |
| · Business, Corporate | | | | hands. |
| · Entity Formation | | | | What you should look for when hiring a paralegal |
| · Living Wills and Trusts | | | | service? First, find out how much experience the |
| · Intellectual Property | | | | paralegal has. Most if not all paralegal services will |
| · Collections/Judgments | | | | have employees who have worked for large law |
| · Tax Issues | | | | firms. This fact is of importance to the client |
| · Personal Injury | | | | demonstrating the paralegal has a well-rounded on |
| · Investments Gone Bad | | | | the job education. Second, make sure the paralegal |
| Paralegals can complete all the right forms for your | | | | you chose is certified. Finally, make sure the service |
| legal issues but cannot present them in court. When | | | | you hire understands your legal issues. If not, look |
| using a paralegal service it's understood that any | | | | elsewhere. After all, you want it done right the first |
| court filings must be done In Pro Per, or In Proper | | | | time. |
| Person. This alone will save you money. | | | | |