Legal ✦ Industry

Legal
virtual assistants

Legal virtual assistants for document management, scheduling, intake and admin — from $14/hr + GST.

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Looking for VA work? Apply at staffingsolutions.ph
$14/hrFrom, + GST · full-time
70%Average saving vs a local hire
14 daysBrief → first day
Fully managedWe hire, you lead

Virtual assistants for legal

Law firms run on documents and deadlines. A dedicated legal VA handles document management, diary, client intake and back-office admin so fee-earners stay billable.

Every placement is recruited, hired and managed by us and backed by our zero-risk promise: no placement fee, money-back first week, free replacement.

What they actually do

The work that comes off your desk

In an Australian law firm the admin does not sit in one place. It is spread across every open matter: the file that cannot be opened until the conflict search is documented, the affidavit whose annexures are not paginated, the settlement that cannot book because a search has not been ordered, the bill that has not been drawn because nobody ran the WIP report.

The taskWhat that actually involves
Matter opening and conflict searches

Runs the conflict search across the full contact database in LEAP, Actionstep or Smokeball, saves the search result to the file, opens the matter under the correct matter type, loads parties and related entities, and builds the folder structure the firm uses.

Costs disclosure and engagement packs

Draws the costs agreement and disclosure notice from the firm's precedent, drops in the estimate range and scope the practitioner has settled, sends it out through LawConnect, Annature or DocuSign, files the executed copy and diarises the update when the estimate moves.

Court forms and e-filing

Prepares originating process, notices and orders in the court's current form, then lodges through the firm's own registered account on the NSW Online Registry, Federal Court eLodgment or InfoTrack once the practitioner has authorised the filing, pays the filing fee against the firm's credit facility, saves the sealed copy to the matter and diarises the return date.

Affidavits and annexure bundles

Formats the affidavit to the court's rules, marks and paginates annexures with the annexure certificate on each, splits voluminous material into exhibits, cross-checks every paragraph reference against the correct annexure letter and page, and prepares the clean copy for swearing.

Court books and tender bundles

Builds the court book to the registry's electronic bundle requirements: continuous pagination, OCR text layer, bookmarks to each tab, a hyperlinked index, and a reconciliation pass that confirms every document in the index is in the bundle and nothing else is.

Discovery review support

Loads collected documents into Relativity, Nuix Discover or the firm's review platform, de-duplicates, applies objective coding for date, author, recipient and document type, applies the solicitor's redaction mark-up, and produces the list of documents in the court's required format.

Chronologies and briefs to counsel

Pulls dates out of correspondence, file notes, clinical records and bank statements into a chronology that cites the document and page for every entry, then assembles the brief to counsel with index, pleadings, evidence and the observations memo.

Conveyancing searches and settlement prep

Orders title searches, plans, s 10.7 planning certificates (the former s 149 certificates), rates, water and company extracts through InfoTrack or GlobalX, assembles the vendor disclosure or s 32 pack for the practitioner to check, creates the PEXA workspace and populates the settlement statement for approval.

Trust receipting and reconciliation prep

Prepares trust receipts against the right matter, matches bank deposits to files, prepares the draft monthly trust reconciliation and trust statements, chases missing disbursement invoices, and assembles the trust records the external examiner asks for each year.

Billing runs and WIP reports

Runs the WIP and unbilled disbursement reports, drafts bills from time entries, applies the fee earner's write-offs, produces itemised bills where a client has requested one, issues after approval, and works the aged debtors list with reminder correspondence.

Subpoena and notice administration

Drafts the subpoena and schedule, calculates conduct money, arranges service and files the affidavit of service, diarises the return date, attends to inspection notices, then indexes and circulates produced material once the practitioner has cleared it.

Client due diligence collection

Collects and verifies identity documents, runs sanctions and politically exposed person screening in the firm's tool, records the customer due diligence file against the matter, and prepares the file note for the practitioner to review before the designated service is provided.

File closing and archiving

Runs the closing checklist: final bill issued, trust balance at nil, originals and deeds returned or entered in the deeds register, correspondence filed, matter closed in the system and the destruction date diarised under the firm's retention policy.

What stays with you

We are a staffing company, so this list argues against our own interest. It is also the part that matters: the work below is reserved, and no amount of supervision moves it. Get the line written down before anyone starts in a law firm.

  • Legal advice and supervision stay with practitionersOnly an admitted practitioner holding a current practising certificate may engage in legal practice, and section 10 of the Uniform Law carries a criminal penalty. A principal also carries a standing duty to supervise the legal services the practice delivers, including the parts done by non-legal staff. Support staff draft; the practitioner settles the document, gives the advice and signs it.Legal Profession Uniform Law (NSW, Vic, WA) and the state Legal Profession Acts elsewhere; Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules rule 37
  • Trust account authorityTrust withdrawals must be authorised by a principal or an authorised legal practitioner associate. Where that person is unavailable, the law practice may authorise another Australian legal practitioner whose practising certificate allows them to receive trust money, and that authorisation is recorded internally rather than notified signatory by signatory. Offshore staff can prepare receipts and reconciliation working papers. They cannot authorise a payment.Legal Profession Uniform General Rules 2015; annual external examination lodged with the designated local regulatory authority — the Law Society of NSW, the Victorian Legal Services Board + Commissioner, or the Legal Practice Board of WA — and the equivalent regulator under each other state or territory's Legal Profession Act
  • Identity verification, witnessing and digital signingVerification of identity for a land transaction has to be done in person — by the subscriber or its employee, an Identity Agent, or an Australian consular officer where the client is overseas. Following the Participation Rules identity standard is a safe harbour for the subscriber's duty to take reasonable steps, not a form an offshore team can complete. Affidavits and state statutory declarations still need a prescribed witness, although a Commonwealth statutory declaration can now be made digitally through myGov without one. The subscriber's digital signing certificate may not be used by any other person, and the Certifications on a registry instrument are given personally by the certifier.Participation Rules made by each state and territory Registrar of Titles under the Electronic Conveyancing National Law (ARNECC model rules), and state oaths and affidavits legislation
  • Conflict and confidentiality decisionsAnyone can run the conflict search. Whether the firm can act, whether informed consent is possible and how an information barrier is built are decisions for the solicitor under the conduct rules, and they are recorded as such.Australian Solicitors' Conduct Rules, as adopted in each state
  • AML/CTF obligations sit with the practiceSince 1 July 2026 law practices providing designated services are reporting entities. Documents can be collected and verified by support staff, but enrolment, the AML/CTF programme, the compliance officer role and suspicious matter reporting stay inside the practice.AUSTRAC, under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006
  • The solicitor on the recordA document is filed under the name and certification of the solicitor on the record. Preparation and lodgement can be delegated. Responsibility for what the document says, and for any certification it carries, cannot be.Court rules and the Legal Profession Uniform Law
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Legal intake coordinator

Enquiries answered fast, conflicts prepared, matters opened.

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Questions

Frequently asked

Can they do legal work, or just admin?
Paralegal-level support work, under your supervision — document preparation from precedents, court form completion, discovery and bundle assembly, conveyancing file progression, matter opening and conflict checks, billing narratives and trust file paperwork. What they cannot do is give advice, appear, or exercise judgement reserved to an admitted practitioner, and trust account authority stays with your licensed staff. In practice they do what a junior paralegal does, at a fraction of the cost.
How do you handle privilege and confidentiality?
NDA and confidentiality clause before day one, and they work entirely inside your practice management system as a named user with permissions you control — matter files never leave your environment. Most firms scope access matter-by-matter at the start and widen it as trust builds. Where a client engagement has specific confidentiality undertakings, tell us and we'll screen and brief accordingly.
How much does it cost?
From $14/hr + GST for a full-time, dedicated team member — roughly $29K a year against $95K–$115K all-in for the local equivalent once you add super, leave, payroll tax, software and a desk. No placement fee, no setup fee, no recruitment retainer: you pay from the day they start, for hours worked. Interviewing candidates costs nothing. Run your numbers →
How fast can we start?
Typically 14 days from your discovery call to day one. In the first week we source and screen against your brief; you get three matched profiles and interview whoever you like. Once you choose, we handle the offer, the contract, equipment and connectivity checks, and induct them on our side before they reach you. Specialist roles — developers, NDIS claims, anything needing niche software — can take a week longer, because we won't pad a shortlist just to hit a date.
What if it's not the right fit?
You're covered twice over. If it's clearly wrong by day five, your first week is refunded in full. After that, a free replacement any time — new shortlist, new interviews, no second fee, because there was never a first one. Before it gets that far, talk to us: our HR manager will work through it with you and the team member, since most problems turn out to be an unclear process rather than the wrong person, and a fortnight of coaching usually fixes it. Replacing someone is the last resort, not the first move.
Is there a minimum term?
Three months, then month to month. It's the same runway you'd give a new local hire to learn your systems, your clients and your standards — and the team members who get a fair run are the ones who stay for years. There are no exit penalties at any point, and if the issue is the person rather than the role, the first-week refund and free replacement cover that separately.
How do you handle confidentiality?
The same way you'd treat any remote team member. Every placement signs an NDA and a confidentiality clause before day one, and they work inside your systems — your email, your CRM, your file storage — so you control what they can see and can revoke access instantly. No client data is stored on our side.