Well-known Michigan Paralegal Dawn Draper Discusses Her Long and Rewarding Career Professional Overview Dawn Draper owns and operates The Virtual Paralegal, based in beautiful Northern Michigan. She prepares legal documents for court filing, drafts responses, motions, stipulations, briefs, trial preparation, creates PowerPoint presentations for trial, data entry, correspondence, graphic design, newsletters, web design, and answers telephone calls for... (401 views)
Laura Ahtes: Paralegal, Potter Anderson Corroon, LLP, Wilmington, DE For Laura Ahtes, education was the lucky charm that launched her career. After obtaining her degree from Goldey-Beacom College and graduating with honors from the ABA-approved Paralegal Certificate Program through the Legal Education Institute (LEI) at Widener University, she has never looked back. Widener University has a long-standing reputation for providing quality... (400 views)
Lorie Strickland: Paralegal, Raleigh, NC In the world of real estate, the accepted mantra is, ''Location! Location! Location!'' For paralegal Lorie Strickland, the best location is outside of the office. (398 views)
Brenda Young: Legal Assistant at Weil, Gotshal & Manges, LLP Even as a child, Brenda Young argued like a lawyer, defending her ideas until her point was made. Though too young for law school, Young learned her lawyer tactics from a different source: television. (396 views)
Well-known New York Paralegal Ana Pierro Reflects on a Long and Rewarding Career Professional Overview Ana Pierro serves as an expert in regulatory change management for a large financial company in New York City. She is responsible for regulatory change development and management of systems and programs to advise the business on procedures and policies. Ms. Pierro works with line of business to update and develop procedures and policies concerning... (395 views)
Cynthia Young: Paralegal Coordinator for Wolff & Samson, PC, in West Orange, NJ Cynthia Young began her career as a legal secretary and has quite a romantic story to tell about her first years in the legal profession. (395 views)
Dorothy Secol, CLA and Peggy E. Stalford, LA Experienced legal assistants Dorothy Secol and Peggy Stalford knew they could succeed producing legal work outside of the traditional law office for a wide range of practitioners, and in 1986, Paralegal Services was born. (392 views)
Well-known Paralegal Barbara Haubrich-Hass Reflects on a Long and Rewarding Career Professional Overview Barbara Haubrich-Hass, ACP/CAS, serves as an administrative legal assistant with the law firm of Chain | Cohn | Stiles in Bakersfield, CA. In 1980, she began her legal career working for civil defense firms in Bakersfield. Since 1995, Mrs. Hass has worked for David K. Cohn, who is the managing senior partner at Chain | Cohn | Stiles. She is Mr.... (388 views)
Allen F. Mihecoby: Paralegal, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Company, Fort Worth, TX Allen Mihecoby admits that he just fell into the perfect profession. He entered college with plans for a career in medicine. During his freshman year, he joined the debate team and decided that a career in law was for him. (386 views)
Online Paralegal Schools—the Future An Overview The paralegal profession is booming as many people are trying to venture into this profession. Even new courses are brought up for college students to make them aware of the paralegal profession. (382 views)
Profile: Siobhan Smith; Corporate Paralegal; Steptoe & Johnson, LLP Corporate paralegal Siobhan Smith comes from a long line of legal professionals and says there was never any doubt that she would pursue a career in the law. LawCrossing speaks to Smith about her career and the secrets to her success; she was recently named one of the top paralegals in the nation by legal author Carole Bruno. (378 views)
Paralegal Jan Ezell Achieves Great Success at Alston Bird in Atlanta Who says big firms are staid? LawCrossing speaks with paralegal Jan Ezell about her ever-changing career at Alston & Bird in Atlanta and why the firm is considered one of the best places to work. (377 views)
First Male Legal Assistant Elected to Head National Legal Assistants Associatio In many firms, attorneys administer the work of legal assistants. Gary Melhuish would like to see more firms hire Legal Assistant Managers. LawCrossing speaks with Mr. Melhuish about the niche profession and his role as the new president of the Legal Assistant Management Association - the first man to head the organization. (375 views)
Elaine Mowcomber’s Affordable Document Preparation Services Elaine Mowcomber has been running her own successful paralegal practice, Affordable Document Preparation Services, since 1994. She was born and raised in Long Beach, California. The paralegal has four siblings and enjoys running, swimming, tennis, softball, and riding a bike. Although Elaine loves sports, she believes golf “is too boring.” She stated she really has a... (374 views)
Paralegal Schools and Where to Find Them Although accredited degrees are not required to obtain a paralegal certificate, many professionals agree the extra credentials can help when beginning a job search. (367 views)
Detailed Paralegal Services, LLC Kathryn Dicken owns and manages Detailed Paralegal Services, LLC, in Tucson Arizona. She specializes in divorces, legal separation, custody, parenting time, paternity, child support, last wills, living wills, power of attorney, and parental power of attorney. As a certified legal document preparer, Kathryn’s goal is to “provide quality legal documents to the public at... (365 views)
The Suffolk University Paralegal Program At its Beacon Hill campus next to the government center in downtown Boston, Massachusetts, Suffolk University recently celebrated the centennial anniversary of its law school. For the last 20 of those 100 years, the school has offered a selection of paralegal programs within the department. (364 views)
Profile: Negar Ashtari When women call the Tahirih Justice Center for help, paralegal Negar Ahstari is generally their first point of contact. LawCrossing talks with Ms. Ashtari about her work at the center and the desperate women who call there for help. (361 views)
Paralegal Dana Fortier Discusses Her Virtual Legal Support for Small Law Firms and Solo Attorneys Professional Overview Dana Fortier owns and operates Your Branch Office in Novi, Michigan. She provides virtual legal support for small law firms and solo attorneys who need the benefits of having a large staff, but don't have a budget for that staff. Ms. Fortier specializes in document production, management, e-discovery, file management, mediation, arbitration, and... (360 views)
Pioneering Paralegal Shelley Widoff on Lower Standards for Paralegals | Founder of the Boston Paralegal Resource Center Fiercely independent and proud of the paralegal profession, Shelley Widoff is worried that it's too easy to become a paralegal these days and that the reputation of the profession is eroding as a result. (355 views)
Law Librarian and Actor: Mary Dryden At age three Mary Dryden began training as a ballet dancer. A ski accident 14 years later, however, forced her to look elsewhere for artistic expression. So Dryden instead invested her time in acting. (345 views)
Kristine Farmer: Immediate Past President and Board Advisor for the National Federation of Paralegal Associations and Trial Paralegal for Godwin Pappas Langley Ronquillo, LLP, Dallas, TX Kristine Farmer is a trial paralegal for Keith A. Langley at Godwin Pappas Langley Ronquillo, LLP, in Dallas, TX, and works in the area of construction and surety. For the most part, she deals with ''complex disputes for national construction companies involving construction and design defect claims, default terminations, affirmative construction claims, and all kinds of... (344 views)
Karen Woodward: CLA, Pearson, Horowitz & Burnett, P.C., Denver, CO Karen Woodward, a paralegal for Pearson, Horowitz & Burnett, P.C., enjoys working for the small, Denver, CO, firm. However, after almost 16 years as a paralegal, Woodward is about to take her career in a new and interesting direction, combining her love of the law with something else that is close to her heart. (338 views)
Catching up with Jim Barber, CP: One of The Best Paralegals in Texas/ DFW Paralegal Service Personal Life Jim Barber is a Certified Paralegal (CP) who manages DFW Paralegal Service, which is based in Fort Worth, TX. In 2005 we profiled him on LawCrossing, and are glad we had a chance to catch up with him. Jim is a Certified Paralegal who under the appropriate supervision specializes in various legal matters, which include labor and employment, state and... (333 views)
Marcia Meekins: Legislative Assistant, Rhumb Line, LLC, Richmond, VA Although Marcia Meekins entered college with her career goals focused on music education, these days, the law is music to her ears. (328 views)
Chad M. Papenfuss- Expert Litigation Support Administrator With Fredrikson & Byron in Minneapolis, MN One of the hottest fields in the legal profession is e-Discovery and electronic information, according to Chad Papenfuss, litigation support administrator at Fredrikson & Byron, Minneapolis. LawCrossing speaks with Papenfuss about the challenges of automating the law and his crusade to make legal documents a click away. (322 views)
Todd Frankel: Paralegal, Reed Smith, LLP, Los Angeles, CA Todd Frankel, a paralegal at Reed Smith in downtown Los Angeles, CA, made the career change from photojournalist to paralegal in January 2004, and he loves his new job. A litigation paralegal, Frankel deals with product liability with regard to pharmaceutical and medical device technology. (318 views)
Assistant Vice President and Litigation Paralegal Karri Yurkovich at Bank of America Discusses Her Rewarding Career and Sexiest Case Professional Overview Karri Alecia Yurkovich serves as an assistant vice president, operations team manager, and litigation paralegal for Bank of America in Plano, Texas. She specializes in corporate, real estate/contracts, banking, bankruptcy, collections, title, oil and gas, trademarks & patents, mergers & acquisitions, compliance, and litigation entailing both... (316 views)
Kalisha Reed: Paralegal, Omaha, NE Curiosity and intrigue are the forces that drew Kalisha Reed into the legal field. (309 views)
Profile: Patricia Gustin, Certified Legal Assistant and Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator, Harrisburg, PA Paralegal and fire investigator is a unique blend. And Patricia ''Pat'' Gustin is a unique character. LawCrossing speaks with Ms. Gustin about her varied and colorful career. (308 views)