The Paralegals Fix Kit
Built for paralegals.
Paralegals are skilled, deadline-driven and often paid like professionals without the overtime protection that federal rules usually give them. The leaks I see are hours that never reach the timesheet, a salary that does not fit any exemption, pay never compared across practice areas, and freelance work priced from a guess. Each leak below works from your own records. This kit finds where the money leaks in your own work and gives you the steps and the words to close each one.
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The 7 leaks it covers
3 you can close it · 3 the other side owes it · 1 a pro decides
- Treated as exempt, though paralegals generally are notWhere to look first: If you are salaried with no overtime, ask HR which exemption they use.Keep it from coming back: Keep your own weekly hours log, including after-hours email and calls.The other side owes it
- Overtime paid on base rate instead of the regular rateWhere to look first: Pull your stubs for any week you worked over 40 hours (VERIFIED: DOL Fact Sheet #56A) AND got a bonus tied to hours, billing or a case result.Keep it from coming back: Every overtime week with extra pay on the stub, check the overtime rate the day you get paid.The other side owes it
- After-hours and lunch-hour work that never reaches the timesheetWhere to look first: For two weeks, write down the clock-in and clock-out times on your stub next to the times you actually started and stopped working: filing deadlines after hours, answering email from home, working through lunch at trial.Keep it from coming back: Clock in before the first task and clock out after the last one. Log any break that gets interrupted, the same day.The other side owes it
- Pay never compared by practice area and settingWhere to look first: Write down your full package from a recent stub: salary or rate, overtime, bonus, CLE allowance and certification pay.Keep it from coming back: Re-check your rate against postings once a year and before you accept any job.You can close it
- Certification earned, but no pay step or title tied to itWhere to look first: List any paralegal certificate or national certification you hold, and the date.Keep it from coming back: Get certification pay and CLE coverage in the offer letter.You can close it
- Freelance paralegal rate set from a guess instead of your costsWhere to look first: Add up a year of business costs: software, research access, insurance, phone, CLE, equipment.Keep it from coming back: Re-run your cost floor every January.You can close it
- No tax set aside from money paid with nothing withheldWhere to look first: Write down which of your pay arrives with no tax taken out: freelance paralegal fees.Keep it from coming back: Move the set-aside the day each payment lands. Put every estimated-tax date your preparer gives you on the calendar in January.A pro decides
Free: one full leak from this kit
No sign-up, no email. Here is leak 1 of 7 exactly as it appears in the kit, so you can see what you get before you buy.
Treated as exempt, though paralegals generally are not
The other side owes it- If you are salaried with no overtime, ask HR which exemption they use.
- The federal rule says paralegals and legal assistants generally do not qualify as exempt learned professionals (VERIFIED: 29 CFR 541.301(e)(7)). An exception can apply to those with advanced specialized degrees in another professional field who use that knowledge in the work.
- Keep a log of your weekly hours for a month: in the office, after hours, and email from home.
- If you are not exempt, hours over 40 (VERIFIED: DOL Fact Sheet #56A) are overtime at one and one-half times the regular rate.
- Bring the log and HR's answer to the Wage and Hour Division if it does not add up. Back wages reach back 2 years, 3 if willful (VERIFIED: DOL WHD worker FAQ).
Your part: Ask in writing, keep the log, and decide whether to file.
Email to HR or the office manager: Subject: Overtime classification question Hi [NAME], I am a paralegal paid a salary of [AMOUNT] with no overtime. Can you tell me in writing which overtime exemption applies to my position? Over the last month I have averaged [HOURS] hours a week, including [HOURS] after hours. Thank you, [YOUR NAME]
Keep your own weekly hours log, including after-hours email and calls.
What this kit can't decide for you: Whether you meet an exemption is decided by the Wage and Hour Division or a court. State rules may differ; not covered.
That's 1 of 7. The other 6 come the same way in the kit: steps, words to send, a habit to keep each one closed.
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What people in this work look up
When paralegals go looking for answers, they search things like “paralegal salary”, “paralegal overtime”, “paralegal pay” and “freelance paralegal rates”. Those searches turn up forms, averages and other people's numbers. This kit starts from your own records instead: the 7 places money leaks in this work, where to look first and the words to send to close each one.
What you get for each leak
- Numbered steps to close each leak
- Your part, spelled out
- Words you can use: letters and scripts, ready to send (fill in the brackets)
- A habit that keeps each leak from coming back
- An honest line on what the kit can't decide for you
A page from the kit
Questions people ask
Treated as exempt, though paralegals generally are not: where do I start?
Start here: If you are salaried with no overtime, ask HR which exemption they use. To keep it from coming back: Keep your own weekly hours log, including after-hours email and calls.
Overtime paid on base rate instead of the regular rate: where do I start?
Start here: Pull your stubs for any week you worked over 40 hours (VERIFIED: DOL Fact Sheet #56A) AND got a bonus tied to hours, billing or a case result. To keep it from coming back: Every overtime week with extra pay on the stub, check the overtime rate the day you get paid.
After-hours and lunch-hour work that never reaches the timesheet: where do I start?
Start here: For two weeks, write down the clock-in and clock-out times on your stub next to the times you actually started and stopped working: filing deadlines after hours, answering email from home, working through lunch at trial. To keep it from coming back: Clock in before the first task and clock out after the last one. Log any break that gets interrupted, the same day.
What it can't decide for you
This kit works from your own records. It doesn't give legal, tax, licensing or financial advice, and it never tells you what to charge. Where a CPA, attorney, insurer or state board makes the call, the kit says so and gets your records ready for them.
13-page PDF · instant download after payment · Code VYR-KIT-PARALEGALS-01
Opens secure checkout. Instant download after payment. 30 days to ask for a refund — refund policy · terms
Next step
- Run your free LeakReceipts check — it reads your own receipts and records and shows where money is leaking out, line by line.
- TrueNET — the whole-picture money truth: what you actually keep after every cost, across everything you earn and spend.
Use Jobber or Housecall Pro? Run the free leak check — it reads your job export in your browser and shows the money leaks the software doesn't flag. Nothing is uploaded.