From museums to law firms – forging a new career as a paralegal

Katie Kuchta shares how she’s forged a new career as a paralegal despite having no previous legal experience.

Six years ago, I would never have imagined that I would one day be working as a paralegal in a law firm. Up to that point, I had no experience of the legal profession, and had not studied law at university, which I thought at the time was essential for anyone wanting to work in law.

I did go to university, though many people laugh when I tell them what I studied. History and Sociology is not so strange, but I followed this up with a degree in Museum and Heritage Management.  I loved studying history from a very young age, and as I grew older my ambitions changed from being a female Indiana Jones to possibly a curator. I did in fact work in a museum for several years, and did my work placement in a Bagpipe Museum in Northumberland which people always find amusing. Sadly, museum jobs are not very abundant, and I decided to go in a new direction, working in the care industry and then into finance.

I joined my previous law firm in 2017 as an administrator in their Public Law department. I really enjoyed it and felt like I learnt something new every day. After a few years in the team, I moved to a paralegal role in the serious injury department, followed by the Court of Protection. I felt confident in moving to these paralegals roles as my managers knew me and knew I was capable of handling more responsibilities.

I joined Minster Law as a paralegal in November 2022. I was very nervous because my lack of legal qualifications and I thought this would put me at a disadvantage amongst my peers. However, I needn’t have worried. They valued the experience I brought to the role, and there are plenty of opportunities for training and learning ‘on the job’. This includes the training on ‘Rise’- the e-learning portal which is invaluable for new starters to the firm. Not only does it contain the mandatory e-learning modules, but there is a whole suite of courses based upon your area of work. Seven months after joining, I still regularly revert to the training programmes on there.

I would say to anyone who is thinking about joining the legal profession but concerned they don’t have the right qualification or background; give it a go. If you have the desire to learn and tackle new challenges, it is an extremely rewarding career.

Want to kickstart your career in the legal field? 

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We boast some of the largest legal teams in the UK, plus in-house IT, marketing, HR, finance, compliance and learning and development teams, so there’s opportunity for everyone at Minster Law no matter your career background.  Take a look at our vacancies to see what opportunities there are!