Legal
Will AI replace paralegals?
BLS places paralegals and legal assistants in its “High” AI-exposure category (of four, relative to other occupations). BLS projects employment to decline 0.3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 40,800 openings a year. OEWS May 2025 median pay is $62,890 (10th–90th percentile $44,740–$101,500). Typical entry education: associate's degree.
Sources: BLS AI exposure categories and Employment Projections 2025–35 (released 27 August 2026); BLS OEWS May 2025; tasks from O*NET 31.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Figures are for the BLS occupation Paralegals and legal assistants (SOC 23-2011).
Paralegals research, draft and organize the documents and case files that support attorneys and their clients.
The figures, with their sources
| AI-exposure category | High (of Low, Moderate, High, Very high)BLS AI exposure categories, 2025–35 |
|---|---|
| Employment, 2025 → 2035 | 404,900 → 403,800BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 |
| Projected change, 2025–35 | −0.3%BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 |
| Openings per year (2025–35 average) | 40,800BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 |
| Median annual pay | $62,890BLS OEWS, May 2025 |
| 10th–90th percentile pay | $44,740 – $101,500BLS OEWS, May 2025 |
| Typical entry education | Associate's degreeBLS Employment Projections 2025–35 |
National figures, all industries and all experience levels. Employment and openings are published by BLS in thousands; pay is annual, in US dollars.
What BLS says, in its own words
“An exposure category is not a forecast of employment growth or decline.” “Exposure does not imply job loss, productivity gains, automation probability, or wage effects.”
“Productivity change - share decreases as tasks such as conducting research and preparing documents are increasingly automated via technology including artificial intelligence (AI), reducing the need for these workers.”
Our count from the BLS table: 165 of the 206 occupations in the “High” category are projected to grow from 2025 to 2035. That is our arithmetic on BLS data, not a BLS statement.
What the work is: O*NET® tasks
The occupation’s core tasks, most important first, as O*NET 31.0 words them.
- 1.Prepare affidavits or other documents, such as legal correspondence, and organize and maintain documents in paper or electronic filing system.
- 2.Prepare, edit, or review legal documents, including legislation, briefs, pleadings, appeals, wills, contracts, and real estate closing statements.
- 3.Investigate facts and law of cases and search pertinent sources, such as public records and internet sources, to determine causes of action and to prepare cases.Judgment
- 4.Prepare for trial by performing tasks such as organizing exhibits.
- 5.Meet with clients and other professionals to discuss details of cases.Relationships
- 6.Gather and analyze research data, such as statutes, decisions, and legal articles, codes, and documents.
How we tag: a task is tagged Judgment, Accountability or Relationships when O*NET’s wording uses one of these verbs. Judgment: evaluate, assess, determine, decide, interpret, diagnose, recommend, investigate, approve, prioritize, resolve. Accountability: direct, supervise, manage, oversee, ensure, plan, establish, authorize, comply. Relationships: confer, consult, negotiate, advise, collaborate, liaise, mentor, train, counsel, persuade, interview, present, meet with. This is our reading of the task text, not an O*NET or BLS classification, and it is not a measure of AI exposure.
For new graduates
- Typical entry education
- Associate's degree
- BLS Employment Projections 2025–35
- Openings per year
- 40,800
- All levels, not entry-level only
The tasks to show proof for: 2 of 6 are about judgment, accountability or relationships
We point you at these because our method treats them as the work that is hardest to hand to AI. That is our judgment, not a BLS or O*NET finding. A capstone, an internship or a part-time job where you made the call, owned the outcome or worked with the people involved is proof. Write what you did, not what you were assigned.
Show the 2 tasks
- Investigate facts and law of cases and search pertinent sources, such as public records and internet sources, to determine causes of action and to prepare cases.
- Meet with clients and other professionals to discuss details of cases.
What this data does not tell you
- How many openings are entry-level, or how many go to new graduates. BLS counts openings at every level.
- How AI will change hiring for junior roles in this occupation. The exposure category is about the occupation’s tasks, and BLS says it is not a forecast.
- Pay or openings in your city or industry. These are national figures.
- Whether your own tasks match these. O*NET describes the occupation, not your job.
BLS also publishes the work experience and on-the-job training usually needed; see the BLS projections table.
Proof worth finding for a Paralegal application
Our editorial starting list, not a survey of postings. The posting you apply to decides what counts.
- Legal research and Westlaw/LexisNexis proficiency
- Demonstrated AI-assisted document review experience
- Strong written communication and case file management
- Paralegal certificate or relevant degree
- Experience with e-discovery tools
Show your proof for one real posting
- Step 1Job Match · 5 tokensPaste a real posting. For each requirement, we quote the line in your resume that proves it, or say nothing was found.
- Step 2Resume · 15 tokensRewrite toward that posting from your own words. Any number we could not find in them is listed for you to check.
- Step 3Know your tasks · FreeYour own tasks against the paralegals and legal assistants data above, labeled task by task.
Related role guides
Legal guideSame BLS occupation: Legal Assistant.
Questions people ask
Will AI replace paralegals?
The data does not say so. BLS places paralegals and legal assistants in its “High” relative AI-exposure category and states that “An exposure category is not a forecast of employment growth or decline.” BLS projects employment to decline 0.3% from 2025 to 2035 (BLS Employment Projections 2025–35). By our count from the BLS table, 165 of the 206 occupations in the “High” category are projected to grow.
How many paralegals jobs open each year?
BLS projects about 40,800 openings a year for paralegals and legal assistants, averaged over 2025–35. BLS defines openings as net employment change plus workers permanently leaving the occupation, so a declining occupation can still have openings. Employment was 404,900 in 2025.
How much do paralegals earn?
BLS OEWS (May 2025) puts the national median annual wage for paralegals and legal assistants at $62,890. The 10th percentile is $44,740, the 25th $50,340, the 75th $80,080 and the 90th $101,500. These are all industries and all experience levels in the United States; pay in your city and at your level will differ.
What education do paralegals need?
BLS lists “Associate's degree” as the typical education needed to enter paralegals and legal assistants. It is the typical path, not a rule: postings set their own requirements.
How does AISkillScore check a Paralegal application?
We count, we do not guess. Job Match reads the posting’s requirements and, for each one, quotes the line in your resume that proves it, or says nothing was found. The resume rewrite keeps your claims and lists any number it could not find in your own words so you can check it before you send.
Sources
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Artificial Intelligence (AI) exposure categories; Occupational projections, 2025–35, and worker characteristics; Employment Projections definitions; Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: Paralegals and legal assistants. BLS data is in the public domain.
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. O*NET 31.0 Database · CC BY 4.0 · Paralegals and legal assistants on O*NET OnLine. Changes: we show up to eight of the occupation’s core tasks, most important first, merged across the O*NET codes BLS groups into one occupation, and we add our own task tags.
Check your proof against a real Paralegal posting
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