The job responsibilities of a remote research assistant involve working to collect and analyze information in support of a business, study, or research project. As a virtual research assistant, you work from home and perform your research duties via the internet. Your duties in the private sector may be to assist a business in conducting market research on the industry and compile a database of relevant information. In academic research, you may collect data and review existing literature and reports. A legal researcher, meanwhile, gathers data from past legal cases.