Paralegal Resume Example & Writing Tips (2026)

Paralegal Resume Sample

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ANNA SHEPPARD

Senior Litigation Paralegal

Los Angeles, CA · a.sheppard@email.com · (555) 336-9021

Summary

Litigation paralegal with 7 years supporting complex commercial and employment litigation from filing through trial. Manages document review teams of up to 6 and has supported 3 multi-week jury trials.

Experience

Senior Litigation Paralegal · Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP

2020 - Present

Coordinated trial preparation for a 4-week jury trial involving 22,000 exhibits, building the trial database and managing 3 junior paralegals
Reviewed and coded 28,000+ documents for privilege and responsiveness using Relativity, cutting attorney review time by 35%
Drafted and filed over 200 pleadings and discovery documents across California and federal district courts with zero missed deadlines
Built a 12,000-entry privilege log reviewed by opposing counsel without a single challenge
Standardized deposition summaries in Westlaw Case Notebook, cutting turnaround 5 days to 2

Litigation Paralegal · DLA Piper LLP

2017 - 2020

Prepared deposition summaries and exhibit binders for 45+ depositions in a class-action wage-and-hour matter
Maintained case calendars and docketing for a caseload of 60+ active litigation matters
Managed e-discovery collections of 1.2 TB across 18 custodians with the vendor team
Cite-checked and Shepardized authority in 60+ briefs using LexisNexis before filing

Legal Assistant · Kessler & Boyd LLP

2016 - 2017

Processed intake for 300+ prospective clients a year and kept conflict-check records in Clio
Assembled and Bates-numbered production sets averaging 4,000 pages per matter for review
Filed 150+ documents through the California state e-filing portal and tracked service dates

Education

B.A. Political Science — California State University, Long Beach · 2016

Skills

Relativity, Westlaw, LexisNexis, E-Discovery, Trial Preparation, Deposition Summaries, Case Management, Document Review, E-Filing, Docketing, Bates Numbering, MS Office

Certifications

Certified Paralegal (CP), NALA – The Paralegal Association

Registered Paralegal (RP), National Federation of Paralegal Associations

Paralegal Certificate, ABA-approved program, UCLA Extension

Relativity Certified Administrator, Relativity

Key Achievements

Second-chaired exhibit management in 2 AAA arbitrations, both resolved in the firm's favor

Named Paralegal of the Year at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP in 2023

Trained 9 incoming paralegals on Relativity workflows and firm docketing standards

Recovered $180K in taxable costs through detailed litigation cost memoranda

Languages

English (Native), Spanish (Professional Working)

Interests

Mock trial coaching, Legal aid volunteering, Distance running, Archival research

Use This Example in the Builder

ATS Optimization Tips for Paralegal Resumes

Lead with your practice area specialty (litigation, corporate, IP) — generalist paralegal resumes get lost in ATS keyword matching.

Name the e-discovery and case-management platforms you know (Relativity, Concordance, Clio) — these are the top keywords litigation recruiters search.

Quantify document volume: "Reviewed and coded 15,000+ documents for privilege" is far stronger than "assisted with document review."

Mention trial support directly: exhibit prep, witness binders, courtroom logistics — this separates paralegals from legal assistants in ATS parsing.

Include your certification (CP, PACE, or state-specific) prominently near your name or in a certifications line.

List notarization or e-filing authority if you have it — many firms filter for this specifically.

Show progression: docket clerk to paralegal to senior paralegal reads as trajectory, not just tenure.

Paralegal Resume Example