How do you receive and track your tasks? How would you prefer it? Do you send out things under the paralegal’s signature or your own? What do you like and dislike about your position? How could it be better?
I’m not sure this is the place to post but essentially a legal assistant/paralegal job fell into my lap. (I use both terms because officially they call me a paralegal and I do all the tasks of a paralegal and a legal assistant). Long story short, I have a good reputation around town, know and have friendly relationships with the right people and am a pretty likable bartender. My dad was also a lawyer and people seem to think I’m smarter than I am.
I BARELY remember the three branches of government - which yes I have been studying since I was hired two weeks ago.
Any books suggestions that go over everything I need to know to be successful in this job? I’d buy an overpriced textbook at this point. Many of my friends are in law school and I’ve been looking at their notes but they all have fundamental knowledge that I don’t.
I want to transition out of this role as I got stuck it in from the moment I graduated. I had a taste of what it was like being an IT Analyst(under mentorship of a PMP) until Covid got me laid off and I haven’t been able to get back into it since.
Now, I am considering maybe coding or something that I can work remotely with. But I don’t know what else there is out there besides coding.
I despise the legal field and how toxic the attorneys are. They are all very condescending and always have that “Lawyer Arrogance”.
Can I receive some advice?
Hello, I recently graduated a few weeks ago with a B.A in history. My original plan was to become a social studies/history teacher, but the prospect of becoming a teacher makes me very nervous. I have heard way too many stories in the past year from teachers in my district. They say that things are absolutely terrible and they recommend for me to run for the hills so that I can look into another field.
I have always had an interest in law and I've always wanted to help people, so I was thinking about possibly looking into becoming a paralegal. I'm very organized and detailed, and I enjoy doing research. I have found an entry level legal assistant position in my area, and I'm planning on applying.
However, I am unsure about applying because I really have no experience. I know, it's "entry-level", but I'm still worried. I am wondering if I should just dive in and apply since it's an entry level position, or, if I should try to pursue a paralegal certificate first. It is a small law firm with one attorney and one assistant, and the attorney focuses on family law and labor employment law. An interesting thing that I noticed is that the attorney attended law school where I earned my undergrad degree.
I honestly feel very embarrassed by my work experience and I'm struggling with forming my resume to fit this job. Most of my work experience consists of food service and customer service. I've worked for both the city and the county, but as a camp counselor and a concessions attendant, so nothing fancy at all. I also dabbled in a sort of internship where I was a camera operator for a few months at my college's news station, but that was it. On my resume I'm not adding the food service experience and I'm trying to focus on my jobs with the city and the county, but I still feel like I'm falling short. I just don't seem to be a good enough applicant. Is there anything I can do to make myself stronger on my resume?
Would it be best for me to send in an application or to seriously consider getting a certificate?
Edit: Thank you to all who have encouraged me to apply! I am submitting my cover letter and resume soon, I'm just having someone look it over before I do.
Hi all. My apologies if this has already been asked. I’m currently preparing to graduate from my undergrad program and am in the process of applying to jobs. I plan on applying to law school but want to first get an entry-level job in the legal profession both for experience and to make sure I want to pursue this career path. For my applications, should I mention or omit this information? On one hand I want to express my genuine interest in the legal field, but on the other hand I don’t want to come off as a waste of time—for lack of a better phrase—as I don’t plan on spending years in the job (given the law school intention).
Appreciate any and all advice :)
I’m a fresh first year attorney in a large American city, and am wondering what is typical to give to my support staff. Thanks for any answers, and feel free to PM.
I am a college student who has worked in retail or fastfood jobs for the most of my working life. I am 20 years old and this is my 2nd office job I get and on average most of my jobs have been about 16/hr, however, this job has been the most intense and the most demanding and I question if being paid 16/hr is worth the kind of work I do. Thoughts?
First year associate here, trying to get a sense of what's an appropriate amount to give an assistant as a first year associate. My salary is ~$85k, midsize law firm, midsize city. I was planning to give her a small ($20) personal gift based on what I know of her interests, plus an Amazon gift card. How much is appropriate for the gift card? $50? $100? Way more? Way less?
To clarify, it would be the $20 gift plus a gift card to Amazon-- so if I did $50, it would be $70 total, or if I did $100 gift card, her gift would be $120 total.
The position comes with a one dollar raise to their base pay which is servers minimum wage and a three thousand dollar bonus paid out at the end of the year. The bonus is only presented under several conditions mainly being that you basically do everything they ask of you period. And anything but perfect attendance will also disqualify you.
The position requires that they cover any call outs, set the server schedule, make sure all server duties and side work is complete and to do it if the other servers did not, take inventory and restock when needed, update POS when necessary and all of these things on top of being a server and their regular duties.
They said if none of them take the position that they will outsource it. We've all had a good laugh at how absurd the whole thing is, but now we're wondering if it's even legal at all...
Edit: WTFs the use of being part of a sub that is fighting for worker and human rights when you guys are gonna down vote anyone with questions?!?!
I've seen this happen to other posts with genuine questions...Reddit just can't help downvoting for no reason 🙃
I was offered a legal assistant position at a large law firm and an administrative assistant position at a paper coating factory for about the same pay. The law firm would pay for me to get a paralegal certification and the paper coating company offers $5,500 tuition reimbursement. Does either position sound good? I want something challenging but not something that will keep me working super late because I’m a single mom. I come from an education background. The paper company added $1,500 bonus and 40 hour/week flexible as to when I come in.
Update: Thanks for the responses! I considered all your responses carefully. I took the paper coating job. Not an ideal position, but I plan to use the tuition money to get skilled in something that will make me a lot of money. The company has a huge variety of positions, so there is opportunity to grow.
(copy/pasted from r/legaladvice)
I’m taking the first steps of legal transition by changing my name. I have to do so ASAP because I’m on track for surgery, but that process itself takes a couple years and basically I need to do this now before I lose my health insurance coverage in a few years.
I want to try doing as much of the process as possible at home because of covid/omicron. However, my county prothonotary (York County) does not accept filing petition of name changes electronically(?)
Here’s what the county prothonotary site says:
Q: Which type of filings are being accepted through York County’s civil court electronic filing system?
A: We are accepting all Civil Suit filings except for:* [list of things including Petition of Name Change] *cannot accept initial filings but may take subsequent filings for these case types.
What do I do then? Do I go to the Prothonotary office in person to hand deliver my petition, fingerprints, payment? I’m a college student 2 hrs away from my hometown permanent address (can’t change my name in the city I’m currently living in), with people I absolutely cannot risk exposing the virus to. Do I need to do "subsequent filings" online as well? What does this even mean?
I tried emailing and calling the prothonotary myself, but all I got was automated messages saying they’re swamped and can’t help most people anyways since they’re not permitted to give legal advice or give assistance in filling out forms, and then directed me back to their website.
Please if anyone has any advice, help me in my gender transition!
I see a lot of U.S. paralegals posting but I don’t see very many Canadians (specifically British Columbia) assistants and paralegals. Where y’all at? It would be nice to meet some assistants in my area/province :)
32F - I have been working in the Property Management field for almost 10 years and looking for a change. Being an apartment building’s Community Manager was never a dream career for me but I needed a job shortly after college and there was room for growth within the company that my sister in law worked for, so I applied and was hired for a Leasing Consultant role. Growing up, I didn’t have a career path I knew I wanted to take or a lifelong job I wanted. But after spending time as a Community Manager, I have found myself interested in the legal aspect of the role and am seriously considering a career change to a Paralegal. I already have a B.S. degree but not in Legal Studies/Criminal Justice/Paralegal etc. I have heard instead of going back to school, there are certificate programs available.
Looking for any guidance on what steps I should take!
Hello everyone! New to this sub and wanted to get some opinions and perspectives from you all.
I am a recent college grad BA in fine arts (political science + legal studies) I did many internships in college one being as a legal intern for a district court in my area supporting two attorneys. I am currently titled as a legal assistant for a successful start up tech software/hardware company based in California. I work directly under an attorney who was titled corporate counsel when I first started but now is titled general counsel as of a few weeks ago. At first, my job was basic doing administrative duties such as sending out electronic signatures, organizing contracts data base and minor legal research. Currently I am on my fifth month of this position months 2-5 my workload started to ramp up. (Drafting contracts, revising and redlining NDAs, drafting procedural documents,drafting amendments for contracts and more nitty gritty contractual work, revising documents and being an important point of communication)
I currently am getting ~48K a year for a salary with a potential bonus upwards to 5k that I can get at the end of the year.
I recently did a performance review on myself & I believe that I have gone above and beyond, more than my job description. Given this background I am very inclined to ask for a raise, I am new to the corporate world, and I am wondering what a good starting point would be to ask for a raise numerically speaking. (1- I was not smart and did not negotiate until it was too late when accepting the job 2- I am the only black woman at the company so I am afraid that this is setting me up to be paid unfairly)
I also want to preface that I do not have a paralegal certification but am considering going through the certification as a negotiating tactic and to help me if I move on from this position.
I also want to comment and say that the attorney who I work for said that my work load would be very similar if not the same if I were to have the paralegal certification..
TIA.. advice, anecdotes or anything else are helpful!
TLDR: I feel like I am not being paid enough for my role and I am doing more than my job description asking for advice regarding starting points in a negotiation
Hi! I'm pretty new to the IP law world and was hoping to find an IP paralegal position. But I keep seeing all three titles with similar work responsibilities so I was wondering if anyone knew the real differences? Thanks!!
Hi guys,
I know this is a stretch but I guess I just need some reassurance and this group has always been so helpful. So the thing is I have moved to Munich about half a year ago after very difficult 2 years of my life. I always loved this city and told myself that one day I would manage and come here, no matter what it takes. I am working a shitty job in retail with salary so low I have to work a minijob just to pay my rent and food- because my level of German is not on a professional level yet. I’ve been applying for countless job offers and I’ve had a few interviews, but the places usually ended up hiring a person who spoke German fluently- I completely understand. However, I keep meeting people who tell me that there are so many jobs available for English speaking people, but I am starting to lose my hope. I’ve found a position so perfect for me, all went well and they turned me down yesterday- it broke me completely. So getting to my question- how long did it take you to find a job? Do you have any tips for me? All help is appreciated. I have a legal degree in International & European law and few years of experience as a legal assistant/paralegal. Thank you all so much ❤️
Hello it's me again.
I am a CSE Professional Level passer (one take), graduate of a social science degree (pre-law), have a teaching experience of around 2 years (college level), and have been trying to freelance these days.
I am willing to learn and be corrected.
I can do basic VIRTUAL ASSISTING, as well. Quite a beginner here but like I said -- more than willing to learn anything.
It would mean a lot to get some work done.
Thank you! Hoping and excited to work with you. DM me.
throwaway for obvious reasons - I have applied to 250+ remote positions with little to no response in the last year. I have a BS from a top tier university, and experience as both an executive and legal assistant, an event and fundraising manager, and in association management (as a director). My background is primarily in nonprofits and working through the state. I am looking for 45k but have honestly been applying to much lower, and clearly have been still striking out. I have been on Indeed and FlexJobs, as well as random job boards. I am at a loss and figured I would try posting here to see if anyone has any leads where they are looking for a highly motivated and enthusiastic professional to provide any kind of admin or customer service support - I am a fast learner and just want to be able to work from my home. thanks so much
There’s a firm looking for an attorney to go to hearing for them. They are aware I’m a new lawyer and I take it that it will be mostly 5 min motion calendars. They want me to quote them a price. These cases are in both state court and federal court in South FL. Any advice will be really appreciated.
Hi there, trying to get out of my covid job and jump ship.
I just graduated pre covid or so, thus all I did so far were admin stuffs. Been at my current job for a year (admin at property management) and what I enjoyed doing the most are social media and handling court matters.
I acquired a lill digital marketing certificate earlier this year out of my interest in it. Been applying for marketing jobs for a while and it seems really hard to get in. Meanwhile I’m also peeping at legal assistance jobs. I’m wondering which is a better field to get in?
I’m detail oriented, assertive, investigative, data driven, and yadayada. I enjoy getting things done, building stuff up, and seeing fast results. I want a profitable career path where I can demonstrate my leadership, where experience/accomplishments is valued over professional training, and leads to a freelance track in the long run.
Any inputs appreciated ))
I was a Legal Support assistant from 2015-2019, I learned a ton and gain some great experience in criminal law. I interacted with everyone involved in criminal cases (attorneys, court personnel, victim/witness, law enforcement, defendants, Doctors etc. I went on to do all the duties of an LSA or paralegal (except legal research) in all the units, from Misdemeanor/Felony, to the special units like gangs, homicide, Sexual assault etc. I developed great relationships with a lot of attorneys, investigators, and other people on the criminal law spectrum, but long story short I was tired of office politics and the responsibility passing/shifting blame culture of the office. The really awesome attorneys were dropping like flies and I was afraid of career stagnation or being in a rut like the stereotype of a county worker. An electrician buddy of mine had a company doing custom house and pool electrical in San Diego and offered to hire me and teach me electrical. I was excited for change and took him up on it but after a year it didn’t work out, in the middle of the pandemic I got a job as a Diesel mechanic. It’s paying the bills but I miss working in law. I applied for a couple legal assistant job In North county Sand Diego on indeed, but I’m not too optimistic. I have a handful of awesome recommendation letters/reference from respected attorneys, but they’re dated 2019 and from another county. I’m probably 2 courses away from an AA in criminal Justice. What are the chances of a law office hiring me? Would another practice besides criminal law be interested with my experience?
Context, got a job offer to be a case manager today at a law firm which caught me out of left field considering I don’t have a background in the legal field or in social work and applied to be a legal assistant/paralegal; also something else I noticed was I gave them a salary range and the offer they gave me was the top end of that range. I had a second round interview at another place last Thursday as a workplace coordinator that coincides more with my interests in terms of career prospects and experience in customer service. Another red flag for the job offer is they gave me until noon tomorrow to respond. I have yet to receive a third round interview as a workplace coordinator even though the interviewer made it seem as if the interview went well and a third round was likely. In your opinion, how should I reply to the law firm and also do case managers have to drive? I don’t have access to do so there’s that as well. Lastly can this situation be used to leverage a third round interview with the workplace coordinator position? Appreciate any help or input, I’m desperate for a job but am currently hoping I get a third round interview scheduled somewhere else as I do not foresee myself in the role of a social worker with no related background thanks
I was a Legal Support assistant from 2015-2019, I learned a ton and gain some great experience in criminal law. I interacted with everyone involved in criminal cases (attorneys, court personnel, victim/witness, law enforcement, defendants, Doctors etc. I went on to do all the duties of an LSA or paralegal (except legal research) in all the units, from Misdemeanor/Felony, to the special units like gangs, homicide, Sexual assault etc. I developed great relationships with a lot of attorneys, investigators, and other people on the criminal law spectrum, but long story short I was tired of office politics and the responsibility passing/shifting blame culture of the office. The really awesome attorneys were dropping like flies and I was afraid of career stagnation or being in a rut like the stereotype of a county worker. An electrician buddy of mine had a company doing custom house and pool electrical in San Diego and offered to hire me and teach me electrical. I was excited for change and took him up on it but after a year it didn’t work out, in the middle of the pandemic I got a job as a Diesel mechanic. It’s paying the bills but I miss working in law. I applied for a couple legal assistant job In North county Sand Diego on indeed, but I’m not too optimistic. I have a handful of awesome recommendation letters/reference from respected attorneys, but they’re dated 2019 and from another county. I’m probably 2 courses away from an AA in criminal Justice. What are the chances of a law office hiring me? Would another practice besides criminal law be interested with my experience?
I was a Legal Support assistant from 2015-2019, I learned a ton and gain some great experience in criminal law. I interacted with everyone involved in criminal cases (attorneys, court personnel, victim/witness, law enforcement, defendants, Doctors etc. I went on to do all the duties of an LSA or paralegal (except legal research) in all the units, from Misdemeanor/Felony, to the special units like gangs, homicide, Sexual assault etc. I developed great relationships with a lot of attorneys, investigators, and other people on the criminal law spectrum, but long story short I was tired of office politics and the responsibility passing/shifting blame culture of the office. The really awesome attorneys were dropping like flies and I was afraid of career stagnation or being in a rut like the stereotype of a county worker. An electrician buddy of mine had a company doing custom house and pool electrical in San Diego and offered to hire me and teach me electrical. I was excited for change and took him up on it but after a year it didn’t work out, in the middle of the pandemic I got a job as a Diesel mechanic. It’s paying the bills but I miss working in law. I applied for a couple legal assistant job In North county Sand Diego on indeed, but I’m not too optimistic. I have a handful of awesome recommendation letters/reference from respected attorneys, but they’re dated 2019 and from another county. I’m probably 2 courses away from an AA in criminal Justice. What are the chances of a law office hiring me? Would another practice besides criminal law be interested with my experience?
I was offered a legal assistant at a large law firm and an administrative assistant position at a paper coating factory for about the same pay. The las firm would pay for me to get a paralegal certification and the paper coating company offers $5,500 tuition reimbursement. Does either position sound good? I want something challenging but not something that will keep me working super late because I’m a single mom. I come from an education background.
