In this guide, you’ll learn how to write a legal secretary resume that gets attention, step by step, with a ready-to-use example at the end.
Creating a legal secretary resume means more than listing your past jobs, it’s about showing you understand the legal environment and can handle the pressure that comes with it. These steps walk you through exactly how to structure, write, and refine each part of your resume so it’s tailored, clear, and ready to impress hiring managers in any law firm.
1. Use a simple layout that highlights the essentials
Your layout is the first impression, and it needs to say “organized and clear,” not “Pinterest board.” Legal professionals don’t want to guess where to find your experience or skills. A clean structure helps them scan fast and see that you understand professional standards in a legal environment.
Stick to a single-column format, left-aligned text, and consistent section spacing. Avoid graphics, tables, or split columns, they can break in ATS and distract from your actual experience. Section headers like Summary, Work Experience, Skills, Education, and Certifications should be clear and placed in a logical order.
Keep these layout tips in mind:
- Use standard fonts like Calibri, Arial, or Helvetica (11–12 pt)
- Set consistent margins (0.5–1 inch) and line spacing (1.0–1.15)
- Bold your job titles, not your entire bullet points
2. Start with a clean, professional resume header
Your resume header isn’t just a formality, it’s prime real estate. It needs to include your full name, phone number, professional email, city and state, and optionally, your LinkedIn URL. Skip outdated details like your full address or multiple phone numbers; nobody’s mailing you anything.
Make your job title prominent if you’re targeting a specific role. For example, if you’re applying for a litigation secretary position, list your title as “Litigation Legal Secretary” just below your name. Keep the formatting consistent and easy to scan.
Include:
- Full name (use your legal name, no nicknames)
- Professional job title (either your current role or the role you're targeting, like Legal Secretary)
- City and state (no full mailing address needed)
- Professional email address (use something simple and appropriate)
- Phone number (your primary, reliable contact number)
- Optional: LinkedIn URL (only if it’s updated and aligned with your resume)
3. Use a simple layout that highlights the essentials
A strong resume summary grabs attention by naming your role, experience, and specialties. It should reflect the exact job title in the posting (like “legal secretary” or “certified legal secretary”) and hint at the type of law you’ve supported. This is your chance to establish credibility right away.
Mention your years of experience, your strongest skills, and specific legal areas you’ve worked in, like litigation, corporate law, or family law. This section is also a great place to naturally fit in important terms like legal document preparation, legal secretary role, or administrative support. Keep it under five lines and cut anything that doesn’t give immediate context.
Example4. Focus your experience on legal-specific tasks
Hiring managers aren’t looking for general admin skills, they want someone fluent in the legal workflow. That means showing your ability to navigate legal documentation, client deadlines, and attorney support in high-pressure environments. Avoid vague phrases like “handled office duties.”
Use each bullet to highlight specific legal tasks you performed. Mention court documents, legal correspondence, and e-filing systems you’ve used. If you’ve worked with confidential client files or prepared discovery materials, name those clearly.
Stronger bullets might look like:
- Prepared and proofread court filings, ensuring compliance with federal and state procedures
- Coordinated attorney schedules for discovery, hearings, and trial dates with no conflicts
- Maintained and organized over 200 legal files using Clio and paper-based systems
5. Use bullets that show your impact, not just your job duties
Writing bullets that list only what you did is a missed opportunity. Hiring managers want to know what kind of impact you had, did you help streamline processes, reduce errors, or improve client communication? Impact tells them you weren’t just present, you were essential.
This doesn’t always require numbers, but they help when you’ve got them. Think about how your work led to better outcomes, fewer mistakes, faster filings, or smoother case prep. And yes, this is where you can flex your soft skills, as long as they’re backed by action.
Examples of impact-focused bullets- Reduced turnaround time for legal document preparation by 30% by reorganizing templates and intake forms
- Trained junior staff on e-filing systems, improving court submission accuracy across the team
- Streamlined attorney-client communication by implementing a new intake checklist, improving client satisfaction scores
6. List skills that prove you can thrive in a legal office
Legal secretaries are expected to know their way around software, documents, and people. This isn’t just data entry, it’s managing court deadlines, interpreting legal terminology, and keeping attorneys sane when the caseload spikes. Your skills section should show you're technically capable and personally reliable in a demanding legal environment.
Start with hard skills: name the legal software, document prep tools, and filing systems you’ve used. Don't just write “legal software”, be specific. Then list soft skills that actually matter in a legal setting: things like organizational skills, time management, and communication skills under pressure. Hiring managers want someone who won’t panic when things get messy.
Include skills like:
- Legal software: Clio, ProLaw, MyCase, Time Matters
- Document handling: legal document preparation, legal correspondence, legal document management
- Office tools: Microsoft Office Suite (advanced Word formatting), shared drives, cloud filing systems
- Soft skills: time management, strong organizational skills, discretion with sensitive client information, multitasking across deadlines
7. Keep your education and certifications relevant
Your credentials should support your ability to function confidently in a legal environment. If you have a paralegal certificate, legal secretary certification, or coursework in legal terminology or court procedures, list it clearly and concisely.
Put the most relevant certifications near the top of your education section. If you’re a Certified Legal Secretary Specialist or have completed legal research training, those are worth spotlighting. Unrelated or outdated coursework doesn’t need space.
Include:
- Legal Administrative Certificate – Completed 2021
- Certified Legal Secretary – National Association for Legal Support Professionals
- Coursework in legal research and court procedures
8. Tailor your resume to each legal secretary job
Every law firm is different. What one hiring manager cares about, like litigation support, might not matter to another who needs someone fluent in corporate law or legal billing systems. A generic resume won’t cut it.
Read the job posting line by line and align your language accordingly. If they mention “legal document management” or “drafting legal correspondence,” mirror those terms exactly. Use your resume summary, experience bullets, and skills section to reflect what they’re asking for.
Match language like:
- “Conduct legal research”
- “Legal document preparation”
- “Provide administrative support to attorneys”
- “Prepare and proofread complex legal documents”
9. Add optional sections that make your resume stronger
If you’ve already nailed the core sections; summary, experience, skills, education, optional sections can give your resume that final layer of depth. These aren’t required, but they can set you apart, especially in a competitive job market. Just make sure each one serves a purpose and ties back to your qualifications as a legal secretary.
You might include certifications, professional development, languages, or volunteer work tied to the legal field. If you’ve completed a course in legal terminology, earned a certified legal secretary credential, or assisted pro bono legal professionals, it belongs here. Don’t include unrelated hobbies or fluff, this space is still about proving relevance.
Optional sections to consider:
- Certifications: Certified Legal Secretary, Certified Legal Secretary Specialist
- Professional Development: Legal research courses, continuing education in court procedures
- Languages: Fluency in Spanish or another language used in legal documents or client communication
- Volunteer Work: Assisted attorneys with document preparation at legal aid clinics
10. Proofread everything carefully
If there’s a typo in your resume, you’ve already lost credibility. A successful legal secretary knows the importance of clean, correct documentation. Your resume is no different.
Check grammar, punctuation, and formatting multiple times. Read it aloud. Ask someone else to scan it. Any mistakes, especially in legal terminology or law firm names, suggest you might miss errors on the job too.
What to check:
- Spelling of legal terms (statute, subpoena, affidavit)
- Consistency in dates, font size, and bullet alignment
- Proper formatting for each section (spacing, bolding, order)
Legal Secretary Resume Example
This example shows you how to combine structure, clarity, and personality into one polished, professional resume. It uses the exact techniques we just covered: job-focused summary, legal-specific bullet points, and clean formatting. You can easily adapt this template to fit your own experience, practice area, or level.
Taylor Sharp
Experienced Legal Secretary
Philadelphia, PA
taylor.sharp@email.com | (215) 555-1347 | linkedin.com/in/taylorsharplegal
Summary
Certified legal secretary with 6+ years supporting attorneys in civil litigation and employment law. Skilled in legal document preparation, legal correspondence, and legal software including Clio and MyCase. Recognized for time management, court filing accuracy, and strong organizational skills in a high-volume legal office.
Work Experience
Legal Secretary
Granger & Rowe LLP – Philadelphia, PA
Jan 2020 – Present
- Draft and proofread subpoenas, motions, and other legal documents for active caseloads across state and federal courts
- Manage attorney calendars, court appearances, and e-filing systems using Clio and state-specific portals
- Coordinate communication with court officials, clients, and opposing counsel to maintain deadlines
- Maintain over 250 active legal files, ensuring all legal documentation is accurately stored and accessible
Legal Administrative Assistant
Turner Legal Group – Philadelphia, PA
Aug 2016 – Dec 2019
- Prepared legal documents and correspondence in support of three attorneys handling employment and labor law cases
- Conducted basic legal research and reviewed court procedures to support accurate document preparation
- Tracked deadlines for discovery, depositions, and trial schedules using shared calendar systems
- Provided comprehensive administrative support, including client intake and maintaining confidentiality of sensitive information
Skills
- Legal software: Clio, MyCase, Microsoft Office Suite
- Legal tasks: drafting legal documents, managing legal files, preparing court documents, legal document management
- Soft skills: strong organizational skills, time management, multitasking, clear communication
- Legal knowledge: legal terminology, court filings, legal correspondence, legal procedures
Education
Legal Administrative Certificate
Community College of Philadelphia – Completed 2016
Associate of Applied Science in Legal Support Services
Delaware County Community College – Completed 2014
Certifications
Certified Legal Secretary
National Association for Legal Support Professionals – Issued 2018
Certified Legal Secretary Specialist – Civil Litigation
Legal Secretaries International, Inc. – Issued 2021
Languages
- Conversational Spanish – used for translating intake forms and client communication
- Basic French – assisted with reviewing bilingual legal documents
Professional Development
- Continuing Education: Court Procedures and E-Filing Systems – Completed 2023
- Legal Terminology for Litigation Professionals – Workshop, 2022
Conclusion
A strong legal secretary resume doesn’t just show you’ve done the work, it proves you can handle the pressure, the paperwork, and the pace. Keep it clean, focused, and packed with real experience that speaks legal. With the right structure and details, you’re not just applying, you’re making it obvious they need to call you.
