Certified Legal Secretary

Cost: $2,752
Length: 52 weeks
Working 6 months later: 100%

Program names, program descriptions and occupation titles appear here in English, because that is the only language the federal and state records publish them in. Everything else on this page is translated.

What happened to people who took this

People enrolled: 15

Small group — treat with caution

Finished the program: 100%Based on 13 peopleTypical California program: 85% of 1,951 reportingThat median pools every California program that reported this measure, whatever its length, credential, or field, and leaves out the ones that reported nothing. It is a reference point, not a rating of this program.
Working 6 months later: 100%Typical California program: 69% of 1,690 reportingThat median pools every California program that reported this measure, whatever its length, credential, or field, and leaves out the ones that reported nothing. It is a reference point, not a rating of this program.
Earnings in one quarter after: $15,000A single quarter of earnings, roughly three months, not a yearly salary. Do not compare it directly with the yearly pay shown for the occupation.Typical California program: $10,900 of 1,339 reportingThat median pools every California program that reported this measure, whatever its length, credential, or field, and leaves out the ones that reported nothing. It is a reference point, not a rating of this program.

The jobs this trains for

This describes the jobs people do, not the classes this program teaches. It comes from the U.S. Department of Labor, which asks people already doing the work. The Department publishes it in English only, so the job names and the sentences below stay in English on this page.

Trains for more than one job. The outlook shown is the weakest of them.

Where California publishes a separate figure for San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA (San Diego County), it appears beneath the statewide one. Statewide stays the headline: people who train here do not necessarily work here.

Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants

Job ads may call this: Legal Secretary · Legal Coordinator · Litigation Secretary · Magistrate Assistant

Some of what people in this job do. The Department rates how important each one is, and they appear in that order.

Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files.
Prepare and distribute invoices to bill clients or pay account expenses.
Mail, fax, or arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, witnesses, and court officials.
Prepare, proofread, or process legal documents, such as summonses, subpoenas, complaints, appeals, motions, or pretrial agreements.

Show 3 more things this job involves

Make photocopies of correspondence, documents, and other printed matter.
Assist attorneys in collecting information such as employment, medical, and other records.
Complete various forms, such as accident reports, trial and courtroom requests, and applications for clients.

Typical pay in California: $64,347per yearSan Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA: $61,476
Projected openings: 36,250San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA: 3,380
Projected change: 0%
Usually needs: High school diploma or equivalent

Getting in

Experience needed first: None
Training after you are hired: 1 to 12 months

These are the federal government's answers for the occupation, not rules this provider sets. California publishes the same two answers for every one of these jobs.

What people in this job actually studied

Most common: Started college, no degree — 30% of the people doing this work.

California says this job usually needs: High school diploma or equivalent. 2% of the people doing it went less far than that.

No high school diploma: 2%
High school diploma: 23%
Started college, no degree: 30%
Two-year degree: 20%
Four-year degree: 22%
Master's degree: 3%
Doctorate or professional degree: 0.7%

This counts people already doing this job, across the whole United States. Every other figure on this page is California's, and the federal government publishes no state version of this one. It is what people happen to have, not a rule about who gets hired. A small row does not mean you would be turned away, and a large one is not a promise of a job.

Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive

Pay, hiring, and what people studied

Job ads may call this: Secretary · Staff Assistant · Office Assistant · Administrative Clerk

Answer telephones and give information to callers, take messages, or transfer calls to appropriate individuals.
Greet visitors or callers and handle their inquiries or direct them to the appropriate persons according to their needs.
Perform payroll functions, such as maintaining timekeeping information and processing and submitting payroll.
Create, maintain, and enter information into databases.

Show 2 more things this job involves

Use computers for various applications, such as database management or word processing.
Collect and deposit money into accounts, disburse funds from cash accounts to pay bills or invoices, keep records of collections and disbursements, and ensure accounts are balanced.

Typical pay in California: $56,711per yearSan Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA: $54,182
Projected openings: 182,240San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA: 17,740
Projected change: +1.4%
Usually needs: High school diploma or equivalent

Getting in

Experience needed first: None
Training after you are hired: Under a month

No earlier job experience is expected, and new hires are not put through a long training period. For work like this, a program is usually the way in.

What people in this job actually studied

Most common: Started college, no degree — 29% of the people doing this work.

California says this job usually needs: High school diploma or equivalent. 3% of the people doing it went less far than that.

No high school diploma: 3%
High school diploma: 26%
Started college, no degree: 29%
Two-year degree: 15%
Four-year degree: 22%
Master's degree: 5%
Doctorate or professional degree: 0.8%

Program details

This program provides online instruction, e-learning, or distance learning only.

A program that prepares individuals to serve as legal office managers special assistants and legal secretaries. Includes instruction in office management secretarial science principles of U.S. or Canadian law legal terminology and documentation legal research legal software applications law office procedures record-keeping billing applicable policies and regulations and professional standards and ethics.

Provider's website →

Someone else may be able to pay for this

This program was on California's Eligible Training Provider List when the state last reported it to the U.S. Department of Labor (2026-08-04). Programs on that list can be paid for through an Individual Training Account. Listings are renewed periodically and can lapse, so a program listed when the state last reported may not be listed today. Ask before you rely on it.

The place to ask is an America's Job Center of California

A comprehensive center is where all the required partner programs can be reached; an affiliate site offers some of them. California's Employment Development Department directs people to CareerOneStop's finder to locate one. Contacting a center before traveling is worth it — the state notes that its own staff are not physically present at every location.

The rule: 20 CFR 678.305 — What is a comprehensive one-stop center? · 20 CFR 678.310 — What is an affiliated site? · California EDD — Office Locator

Metro Career CenterAffiliate site
Phone: 619-319-9675 and 619-266-4253
4389 Imperial AvenueSan Diego, CA 92113about 4.9 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Has a veterans' representative
East County Career CenterAffiliate site
Phone: 619-319-9675
151 Van Houten AvePCGEl Cajon, CA 92020about 6.3 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00am- 5:00pm
South Bay Career CenterComprehensive center
Phone: 619-319-9675
333 H StreetSouth Bay Career Bldg. Suite 1055Chula Vista, CA 91910about 9.4 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 5 :00p.m.

Distances are straight-line, so the drive is longer. Call before you travel: opening hours here are as the federal directory published them, and the state notes its own staff are not present at every location.

Find a center anywhere in California, and check what is on the list today:
CareerOneStop — American Job Center Finder (U.S. DOL) · California EDD — Office Locator · California EDD — Eligible Training Provider List

How this gets paid for, and what to ask →

Whether a person can have a program paid for is decided by their local workforce development board and the America's Job Center staff who interview them — not by this site, and not by the training provider. California has 45 local workforce development areas and each sets its own policies, so the answer can differ between two people in neighboring counties. Nothing here is a promise of funding or a determination of eligibility.

The rules cited here, and the state and federal sites linked to, are published in English.

How this site gets its figures, and what they do not tell you →