What law says that a paralegal must work under an attorney?

rare2findd: What law says that a paralegal must work under an attorney?
What law says that i MUST hire an attorney to do what a qualfied paralegal can do. (and Has– and never lost)

Answers and Views:

Answer by cyanne2ak
Actually, it is the law governing paralegals that says so. The state’s code of ethics governing attorneys also says so. Please, read the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct. Just google them.

Answer by hensleyclaw
Paralegals are not attorneys. They do not have a license to practice law. Your state will have a statute that defines who may and may not practice. If your paralegal thinks he or she may practice law without a license, he or she is welcome to try. Once he gets caught, he could find him or her self in trouble.

Sorry but a paralegal is not qualified to practice law. There is more to this than filing forms and answering the phone. Lawyers are paid for their knowledge not just of the law, but for their experience. Not everything goes according to plan. Often an attorney must improvise in a situation that was unexpected.

Answer by Barry C
If the paralegal is both qualified and allowed to do the work,then fine. But it is a big dfference between the two. Any paralegal should be able to explain what they can and can not do.

Answer by Mark H
The problem is “unauthorized practice of law.” Many of the things you would do for a private client would be considered to be the practice of law.

Basically a paralegal is limited to doing legal work under the supervision of an attorney. In most cases, this will mean working under the direction of an attorney in a law firm. In some cases, it may mean working under the supervision of an attorney in the legal department of a corporation.

Some paralegals work in trust and estate administration for banks and trust companies. That is permissible because the banks and trust companies also retain lawyers who review all work that has been done in the administration of the trusts and estates.

I know of some paralegals who have a separate business working under contract for a number of different and unrelated attorneys.

However, you are not permitted to do any kind of legal work independently for the general public. If you do, you will be prosecuted for unauthorized practice of law.

Answer by Bill P
Most legal secretaries work under attornies, with paralegals there also, it is going to be crowded.

Answer by Off the bus!
The first two responses include almost all of the significant details. Another post added the concept of UPL–the unauthorized practice of law. I think it was unfair to give the first respondent a “thumbs down,” as she mentioned the ABA Model Rules. True, the ABA is a private association, and as such does not make laws; however, the ABA is a powerful and influential group to whom the state and federal judiciaries look for guidance on law and policy governing the practice of law. In fact, many states have incorporated the Model Rules into their rules governing the practice of law; all of the states have based their regulations heavily upon ABA recommended guidelines.

While it has been said that paralegals often know more about the substantive areas of law in which they work than do their attorney bosses, there are few (I believe 4, but don’t quote me) states that will allow even a person who has not attended law school to sit for the bar exam, let alone to practice law. The real question is, what constitutes the practice of law?

Since each state in the U.S. is a sovereign, each state is free to make its own rules and regulations governing just about every area of life and work. Essentially, the only requirement is that where state and federal law disagree, federal law controls. This is obviously most important where the federal government has been granted certain jurisdiction or control over an area or where a constitutional right is in question. Most state rules regarding governance of legal practice differ, but on this particular issue all agree: only licensed attorneys may practice law. Again, the question remains: what exactly constitutes the practice of law?

The ABA rules are broad and vague and have been interpreted differently by many of the states; however, in general, what has been defined as “the practice of law” may be briefly summarized: 1) a non-lawyer may not accept clients 2) a non-lawyer may not set fees 3) a non-lawyer may not provide “legal advice” to a client 4) a non-lawyer may not “split fees” with an attorney. These rules are generally enforced through legislation in each state; however, paralegals have gained significant support regarding their activities in recent years. As a result, paralegals are performing more and more of the work that attorneys traditionally performed in the past, and they are being well-paid for their efforts.

Some states allow paralegals more freedom to “represent” clients than others. Generally, this “representation” is limited to administrative areas of the law. I know of no state that allows paralegals to represent clients in a traditional civil or criminal judicial proceeding.

In summary, there are areas in which paralegals may work without direct supervision by attorneys; however, they must ALWAYS reveal their non-lawyer status. Tradition and the powerful lobby of the ABA essentially control (although they do not legislate) the licensing of attorneys. They have strong incentive to maintain this control. Over time, we will see paralegals performing even broader functions in the legal field, and we may also see mandatory licensure, or at least certification, for all paralegals as a result. That said, we will likely never see the day when paralegals officially are allowed to “practice” law as defined by the ABA and state legislation. If you want to represent clients in court and provide legal advice, become an attorney; otherwise, you are skating on thin ice.