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In the world of law, not all paralegals are created equal. Some skim through regulations, nodding along with authorities, accepting interpretations at face value. Others—those I call the true paralegals, or paraligns—spend hours dissecting every word, re-reading, revising, correcting themselves, and applying the law with unwavering precision. This is the work I do as a volunteer paralegal: I do not have to go to these lengths, yet I insist on it. For me, law is not a guideline to follow passively—it is a discipline to study, interpret, and enforce correctly, even when it takes painstaking time and effort.
There are, broadly speaking, two types of paralegals:
The true paralegals (“paraligns” a playful term for genuine, hardworking paralegals)
: They pull apart statutes, resolutions, and regulations. They digest, interpret, and re-read until the correct legal answer is found. They are, in effect, mini-lawyers, applying the law as it is written, not as someone else says it is.
The legal imitators (“paralleagles” an invented term for untrained imitators of legal work)
): Despite being qualified and registered, they operate superficially. They accept statements from authorities at face value, follow instructions without question, and rarely challenge misinterpretations. Their practice lacks analytical depth, and they risk misapplying the law.
This distinction isn’t just academic—it has real consequences. In fields like residency law, a misinterpretation can affect a person’s legal status. Some paralegals simply go along with what authorities assert, even when it is demonstrably wrong. True diligence demands more: decoding, dissecting, and applying the law until the correct answer is clear.
For anyone training to become a paralegal, it’s crucial to understand this difference. Being a paralegal isn’t just about qualifications or registration. It’s about method, diligence, and courage: pulling apart the law, studying it, and ensuring it is applied correctly. In this sense, a paralegal is the nearest thing to a “cheat lawyer”—someone who works rigorously with the law so that justice and clarity prevail.
Being a paralegal isn’t just a title or a qualification—it’s a commitment to the law, a promise to dissect, decode, and apply it correctly, even when no one is watching and no one makes you do it.
Personal note*.
A qualified and was registered as a paralegal in 2018, with the IOP, who were since taken over by CILEX.
