Successful paralegals are highly organized, accurate, and efficient professionals.  They communicate well, interact effectively with others, use computers proficiently, and work well under pressure.  As legal professionals, legal assistants/paralegals are bound by the ethics and laws that regulate attorneys and the practice of law in Ohio.

Within the definition of legal assistants/paralegals set out by the American Bar Association, legal assistants/paralegals are qualified through education, training, or experience to perform delegated, substantive legal work under the supervision of an attorney.  There are no independent paralegals working in Ohio.

Presently, there is no requirement that paralegals be licensed in the state of Ohio.  As a voluntary initiative, paralegals may seek Certified Legal Assistant (CLA), Certified Legal Assistant Specialist (CLAS), or Certified Paralegal (CP) designation through the National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA) or the Registered Paralegal (RP) distinction after passing the PACE examination sponsored by the National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA).