Forgery is not an option

The other day, one of the newby paralegals came to me and asked how to send something out. I noticed it wasn't drafted correctly, so I mentioned it to her and told her she would need to get the client to re-sign the document. She told me JD filled it out incorrectly. She told me that when she mentioned the mistakes to JD, he asked her to change the document and forge the client's signature.  Paralegal refused and told JD he could forge it, but she wasn't going to. He got angry at her, yelled at her and she changed a couple things on the already signed document.

Evil Green Trial Monster in us all

I have all newbies in my office. It sucks. I was recently assigned to oversee a newby paralegal on a trial. This was a one day trial. It was not a complex case.  I probably could have prepped the trial in a half day or less. However, to a paralegal on her FIRST trial, this was a very big deal. I certainly recognize that, and wouldn't dream of minimizing the expected effort she so clearly required of herself.

We've all been there. You're excited to take on your first trial, but afraid because you have no idea what to do, in what order, or how to complete everything in time.  At that time, out comes the Evil Green Trial Monster in us all. Usually, the EGTM is surrounded by people who understand what the EGTM is going through and stay clear of the EGTM's path until s/he returns to his/her normal cheery self. Unfortunately, that is not the case in my office. The newbies don't understand what an EGTM is and that it subsides post-trial.  They all assume the EGTM is permanently mean and crazy and they have lost their friend forever to the fiery depths of legaldom, never to return. I can't tell you how many times the newbies ran to me expressing their concern for EGTM's mental sanity. 

For those of you who are new out there, please understand that you will be an EGTM sooner or later. No matter how hard you resist, it will happen to you. The good part is that with experience, it will happen less and less. Eventually, your inner EGTM will only show its fangs during huge trials. (The bad part is that the more experience you get, the more big trials will be assigned to you, so it may seem like it happens to you equally as frequently.)

You should know that you are not alone in the battle against time. All paralegals deal with their inner EGTM from time to time. Some aren't self-aware enough to recognize it, some will warn you before you breathe on them wrong.

I will tell y'all what I told all the newbies who came to me to express their concern for their recent encounter with our recent sweet-paralegal-turned-EGTM:

Changing jobs in this economy and hiring politics

If you have a job in this economy, you're considered to be very fortunate. Many people are staying at jobs they hate out of job market fear.

Sending out resumes can be very dangerous.  When I hear people talking about it, I am reminded of one interview experience that could have been disastrous.

Should I become a paralegal?

Recently, someone searched Google for an answer to "Should I become a paralegal?" I don't have the answer for you, and likely, Google doesn't either.  However, if you're looking for a quick quiz to help you answer that question yourself, here you go:

How paralegals avoid unlawfully practicing law

We all know we can get in big trouble (worse than a spanking kind of trouble) for giving legal advice without a bar card.

A newbie paralegal asked me the other day if certain actions existed in our state because she wanted to relay the answer to someone who called on that topic. I told her that whether or not we have that information, you simply cannot provide such information to people. That could be considered legal advice and we could get in trouble for unlawfully practicing law. She acknowledged she knew she couldn't provide legal advice, but didn't know that the information the caller was requesting was considered legal advice.

So, I thought it a worthy topic for a blog post. Here are some examples of practicing law that newbies might not initially understand to be legal advice:

Changing the world, one office at a time

Rarely do we reach a point in our careers that we are willing to risk abandoning our job for our principles. One such opportunity recently arose for me.

Losing momentum

People in a law office can be classified as people who react, or people who elicit reaction. Those who know how to elicit reaction are able to stay one step ahead of their competition and keep momentum in their cases.

CYA notes are important!

Here is an important blog to read from Paralegal Hell. She points out the importance of good note-taking and how to save yourself from potential/ probable future troubles.

Some things should not be said at a deposition

Here's an awesome video excerpt example of what you shouldn't say at a deposition.  This guy looks strangly familiar...

Work-Life Balance for Paralegals

One of my readers recently asked whether there is good work-life balance for paralegals.  This is an excellent question. (Thank you, Indy!)

I want to be a Paralegal! What school should I go to?

Getting a job as a paralegal can be difficult, as in any profession these days (except perhaps for blogging, woohoo), but it can be made easier if you have some credentials backing you up. The more letters you stick after your name and the more colleges you have listed in your C.V. the better for bringing in the dough. How many letters you put after your name is a matter of time and the money you can put into education. There are several options for this, depending on what you're willing to put into it. You owe it to yourself to get the best credentials you can.

10 things you should never let lawyers do by themselves

My blog usually has humor in it, but these are honestly rules to live by.  If you are a new Paralegal, print this one and carry it in your pocket. This is no joke. These rules come from personal experience.

Wikipedia: the differences between a lawyer and a paralegal

Wikipedia says "The greatest differences between lawyers and paralegals are that lawyers can set fees, give legal advice, appear as counsel of record in court, and sign pleadings (and other court documents) in a representative capacity. If a paralegal attempts to do any of these acts, they will be in violation of the unauthorized practice of law statutes that exist in most U.S. states.

What you should know before you become a paralegal: 10 points of caution

I love doing what I do. I recently accepted two mentees to mentor. These are the things I will be telling them as words of caution:

1. The bigger the firm, the more rules there are. Usually, some of the rules make no sense and are there to serve one purpose: make people follow rules.

2. If you have experience fixing electronics, and you are hired into a firm without an IT department, you will become the IT department.

3. In most jobs, lunches and breaks are mandatory and overtime is a luxury when you need to earn a little extra cash.  In a law office, lunches and breaks are luxuries, and overtime is mandatory.

4. You will not like everyone you work with, and not everyone will like you. If that's a problem, move on to the next job. Paralegals are intelligent, strong-willed, territorial, and mostly all are Type A perfectionists. You will be eaten up if you don't fit in with the right personalities.

5. Law is a rewarding profession if you love it unconditionally. The law is not fair, and sometimes judges' decisions, although legally correct, can make you sick to your stomach.  You need to be able to endeavor through those days and come back the next day unphased. If it is something you think you might enjoy, you need to shadow or adopt a mentor to ask questions before you get in over your head. Most local Paralegal organizations can help you contact an established Paralegal. Ask hard questions, like "what three things would you change about your job."

6. Benefits are not what they used to be. Law firms are offering less and less to their employees for retirement, healthcare, and work-based incentives.

7. This job is very stressful. Burn-out rates are higher than ever. You cannot handle stress by "coping" with it, you must be able to "deal" with stress. Do not deal with stress by ignoring it. That won't work.

8. You must be in it for the long haul. You don't get the exciting privileges until you have the experience to handle those tasks. In the first five years of your career, you will learn legal procedure and how to comply with deadlines. If you work near a state border, you'll likely learn multiple states' laws and local county rules and how to apply them. Once you learn the rules of the road, you will be entrusted with more and more complex responsibilities.

9. Organization and multi-tasking are necessary. You will be lost without your own perfect system.

10. Most importantly, in this economy, people are looking for a job with lots of earning potential. No matter how much they pay you, the money is NOT worth it if you don't love the job.

Tips for interviewing for a Paralegal position (can be adapted for other professions)

Late last year, I interviewed for a Paralegal position at a new firm. I guess it's like riding a bycicle (one where the seat goes up your butt no matter how you position yourself). No matter how good you are at interviewing, it's so uncomfortable to act like you're not begging for a job, and to act like you WANT to feed the interviewer's ego. So here are some common interview questions for a Paralegal and some suggestions for responses (adapt to your profession as appropriate):

Myths about Lawyers and the Law

1. LAWYERS PRACTICE LAW.
Truth: Lawyers do not practice law. Lawyers practice:
  A. Whining like a baby until they get their way.
  B. Procrastinating as a test to see how many hoops their paralegals can jump through (like show dogs) before they quit.
  C.  Taking credit for everyone else's work.
  D. Avoiding reality.
  E. Sharpening their gaming skills in between barking-out emails giving wrong instructions about cases they either know nothing about, or don't understand.

So You Want to Go to Law School

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtube_gdata_player&v=nMvARy0lBLE