PARALEGAL TECHNICIAN 1
Career Family: PARALEGAL TECHNICIAN
To land Paralegal Technician 1 in New Jersey you go through the competitive route: you sit an announced exam and the score puts you on the eligible list agencies hire from.
On pay it sits at the foot of the Paralegal Technician ladder. One promotion up is Paralegal Technician 2, whose band tops out about $11,542 higher. To be eligible you bring an associate's degree and 2 years of relevant experience. The FY2026 range lands between $53,807 and $78,268, and state payroll currently lists about 94 people in the title, most of them at Children and Families.
How to get hired
- Watch for an open-competitive announcement for Paralegal Technician 1 on the NJ Civil Service Commission jobs portal. Announcements run for a fixed filing window.
- Apply during that window and sit the examination. Depending on the title, that can be a written test, a rating of your training and experience, or a mix of the two.
- Passing scores go onto a ranked eligible list. Veterans get preference points added on top of their score.
- When an agency has a vacancy it must appoint from the top of that list under the "Rule of Three." Many competitive jobs are first filled provisionally while the list is being built.
Read the official specification at NJ Civil Service Commission.
Pay ladder: Paralegal Technician series
- Paralegal Technician 1 — $53,807 – $78,268 (this title)
- Paralegal Technician 2 — $61,510 – $89,810
Promoting to Paralegal Technician 2 raises the top of the band by about $11,542. Its top salary lands around the 19th percentile of all NJ civil service titles that publish a range.
Rungs are ordered by FY2026 pay. NJ level numbers are not always sequential, so ordering follows salary rather than the title number.
Who employs this title
State payroll records show 94 people working under this title. The median actual salary is $70,930. The agencies employing the most are:
- Children and Families (73)
- Law and Public Safety (10)
- Community Affairs (3)
- Corrections (3)
Counts from NJ YourMoney agency payroll. See statewide workforce analytics.
Official job specification
The text below is the official specification published by the New Jersey Civil Service Commission. The plain-language summary and analysis above are derived from it by NJ Civil Service Navigator.
Definition
Under the limited supervision of a supervisory official, researches laws, rules, and regulations, investigates facts, and prepares documents for use in briefs, pleadings, appeals, and other legal actions; does other related duties as required.
Examples of work
- Researches legal areas of concern to members of the legal staff relating to issues involving the work of the agency.
- Conducts independent research into legal areas of concern regarding his/her own work and preparation.
- Drafts memoranda, communicating the discussion of legal topics and the review and consideration of issues related to the work of the legal section, including memorialization of legal research.
- Prepares formal correspondence to agencies, courts, legislators, and others with whom the employing agency must correspond, involving legal points of interest and matters in issue.
- Prepares formal correspondence in response to citizen inquiries and other similar matters.
- Prepares formal pleadings in the nature of complaints, answers, motions, interrogatories, and other appropriate documents for utilization in proceedings before courts and agencies.
- Reviews cited legal decisions to determine their precedential value.
- Proofreads legal documents.
- Organizes and maintains information related to the function of the legal section to ensure ready accessibility to such information, and retrieves such information upon request.
- Assists in the instruction and guidance of clerical support personnel when directly related to the legal functions being performed.
- Will be required to learn to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information system used by the agency, office, or related units.
Education
Graduation from an accredited college or university with an Associate's degree in Paralegal Studies or, an Associate Degree and a Certificate of Proficiency in Paralegal Studies.
Experience
Two (2) years of experience as a paralegal in a law firm, legal tribunal, or legal department in a public or private entity whose primary function is the research, enactment, enforcement, or litigation of legal matters.
License
Appointees will be required to possess a driver's license valid in New Jersey only if the operation of a vehicle, rather than employee mobility, is necessary to perform the essential duties of the position.
Knowledge, skills and abilities
- Knowledge of fundamental legal principles and concepts.
- Knowledge of research techniques.
- Knowledge of legal publications and periodicals, and the procedures for extracting information contained therein.
- Ability to interpret and apply New Jersey Statutes and regulations.
- Ability to communicate ideas in written form in a clear, concise, and accurate manner.
- Ability to understand the complexities and uses of pertinent and evidentiary laws, rules, and regulations.
- Ability to prepare correspondence.
- Ability to prepare technically sound, accurate, and informative reports containing findings, conclusions, and recommendations.
- Ability to establish and maintain records and files.
- Ability to learn to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.
- Ability to read, write, speak, understand, or communicate in English sufficiently to perform the duties of this position. American Sign Language or Braille may also be considered as acceptable forms of communication.
- Persons with mental or physical disabilities are eligible as long as they can perform essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. If the accommodation cannot be made because it would cause the employer undue hardship, such persons may not be eligible.
Note
The examples of work for this title are for illustrative purposes only. A particular position using this title may not perform all duties listed in this job specification. Conversely, all duties performed on the job may not be listed.
Possession of a Juris Doctorate (JD) degree may be substituted for the above education.
Rule 1:20-20(a) prohibits attorneys who have been disbarred, resigned with prejudice, transferred to disability-inactive status, or under suspension from the practice of law in this or any other jurisdiction from being employed as paralegals/legal assistants in the State of New Jersey.