Positions and Issues - Paralegals as Profit Centers

This page is the result of the special research project Paralegals as Profit Centers.

The Economic Benefits of Paralegal Utilization (PDF)
D. Jeffrey Campbell, Esq. and the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Paralegals
Copyright 2005 American Bar Association. Reprinted by permission.

Associates Versus Paralegals: The Shifting Balance Of Profitability (PDF)
By D. Jeffrey Campbell, Managing Principal, Porzio, Bromberg & Newman; Chair, American Bar Association, Standing Committee on Legal Assistants, 2002-2003

No, a Paralegal is not a Lawyer
Frances P. Kao, ABA Business Law Section

Paralegal Utilization: Improving Efficiency and Profitability (PDF)
Dorothe J. Howell
This article is reproduced with the permission of the Bar Bulletin published by the Maryland State Bar Association.

Is Your Firm Utilizing Paralegals as Profitably as Possible?
Tom Feely

Occupational Outlook Handbook
U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics

Managing for Superior Paralegal Profitability
Altman Weil, Inc.

American Bar Association Standing Committee on Paralegals
Information for Lawyers: How Paralegals Can Improve Your Practice

Site includes the following:

How would a paralegal improve my practice's bottom line?

  • Paralegal time can be billed out separately to your clients, and at lower rates.
  • Paralegals can be paid less than an attorney, yet handle many tasks (under an attorney's supervision) that would otherwise be performed by an attorney.
  • The paralegal staff can be a profit center for your practice. ? See chapters 2 and 3 in the book Paralegals, Profitability, and the Future of Your Law Practice, by Arthur G. Greene and Therese A. Cannon.
    • Comparative Client Cost of Lawyer Alone and of Lawyer Plus Paralegal, Figure 2.1 from Paralegals, Profitability, and the Future of Your Law Practice.
    • Shifting Work to Paralegals, an excerpt from Paralegals, Profitability, and the Future of Your Law Practice. 
    • SCOLA Update: Partnering with Paralegals, a publication of the ABA Standing Committee on Paralegals.
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