Wilson's Divorce Clinic

A Legal Document Assistant (LDA) is an experienced professional who is authorized under California law to prepare legal documents for consumers. However, an LDA is not a attorney and cannot provide legal advice or represent individuals in court. LDA's have the same educational background as a paralegal and are required by law to be registered and bonded in the county in which they have their principle place of business.

The LDA statute clearly requires LDAs to maintain a bond, and to be registered in order to offer document preparation services to the public. At your direction, LDA's can complete court forms for you and may also file the forms with the count and serve them on the appropriate parties. Paralegals are not required to register, but must have a licensed attorney monitor and review their paralegal work and services.

A LDA or paralegal cannot do the following: represent you in court; give you legal advice; tell you what information should be inserted in the documents, interpret documents, or select forms. If you are looking to do businesses with an LDA, request a copy of their registration. If the business states they provide legal and paralegal services, request the name and information of the attorney who is overseeing the work of the paralegal and confirm with that attorney that they are, in fact, providing legal services for that business.