I met my husband at the first law firm I worked at," she said. "I was a legal secretary, and he worked in the file room as he put himself through law school. We actually were best friends for years and married in 2002."
These days, Young and her husband live in Allamuchy, NJ, and are parents to three children aged 19, 13, and 10. While Young is no longer working as a legal secretary, she hasn't strayed far from her roots. Currently, she is the paralegal coordinator for Wolff & Samson, PC, a position that requires her to recruit, develop, and direct the firm's paraprofessional staff.
"My day-to-day responsibilities focus primarily on the allocation of work," she said. "Further, I look for ways to implement procedures to streamline the workflow process. For example, we recently instituted an automated request system attorneys may use to request paralegal assistance with e-filings. Using the automated feature saves time for everyone involved in the process, which ultimately saves the client money."
In addition, Young serves as the firm's director of recruitment. Earlier, she worked as a paralegal on public finance transactions in the firm's corporate department for seven and a half years. She became a paralegal in 1996 after completing Fairleigh Dickinson University's paralegal studies program, from which she graduated with honors.
Young's first job while in high school was a part-time receptionist position in a law firm. Upon graduation, she was a single mother, and the firm offered her a full-time position as a legal secretary so that she could earn a living while going to school at night. While working in this position, she realized she wanted to become a paralegal.
"I supported litigators at the time and found the work to be interesting. It was during this time that I had the opportunity to work off-site on a six-month jury trial with our senior partner, an associate, and two paralegals. I found the intensity of the trial preparation exciting," she said.
A little while after she decided on the goal of becoming a paralegal, she left the firm she was at, went to work for a private practice, and earned her paralegal certificate.
"Earning my paralegal certificate gave me a new perspective on the profession—the acquired knowledge and skills enabled me to be even more valuable to my employer, and my marketability certainly increased," she said. "In fact, within approximately two months of completing the course, the attorneys I worked with hired a secretary and promoted me. I'm pleased to say I've been involved in one aspect or another with the paralegal profession ever since."
Young also earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Caldwell College, from which she graduated cum laude. Although the path she has traveled may not be the easiest or simplest, she is grateful for the experience she has gained along the way because it has taught her skills useful to her career.
"My life experience has most certainly assisted me with my career," she said. "For many years, I learned to balance the role of a parent, a paralegal, and a college evening student. The ability to multitask is something I need and use every day. As my fellow paralegals know, in order to be a great paralegal, you must be superior at multitasking."
Young thoroughly enjoys her current positions at Wolff & Samson and values all of the opportunities the firm has provided her.
"I truly feel lucky to have had the opportunity to develop my paralegal skills at Wolff & Samson," she said. "Further, after approximately seven and a half years, the firm recognized my potential and promoted me to my current positions. I would definitely say that this is a firm that values its employees."
Her advice to aspiring paralegals is to "look for an ABA-approved paralegal certificate program."
"In my opinion, ABA programs provide a solid foundation to build one's career," she said. "The paralegal who has a solid foundation—general legal concepts and terms—coming into a firm will find the transition much smoother than the student coming immediately from college."
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