We had the great opportunity to interview David Couper who was formerly the Madison Wisconsin Chief of Police and has recently written his first book titled Arrested Development: A Veteran Police Chief Sounds Off About Protest, Racism, Corruption, and the Seven Necessary Steps to Improve Our Nation’s Police. We discussed his career progression to chief of police, advice for new police recruits, and the importance of a college degree for law enforcement professionals.

Can you tell us why you decided to choose a career in law enforcement and how you got your first job in this field?
I go over this in my new book; the career path I took and how I was inadvertently preparing to lead a police department just like Madison. After high school (1956), I signed up for a tour in the Marines. I wanted to be an officer but knew that I needed to have a college degree. After my enlistment, I returned to my hometown, Minneapolis, and enrolled at the University of Minnesota. But I now had a wife and infant son and I needed a job, preferably at night, so I could attend classes at the university. That led me to seek a police job. There was an old saying that all you could do after a tour in the Marines was be a janitor or a cop. I was tired of swabbing decks.

What was your career path from when you started in law enforcement until you were promoted to Chief of Police?
My first job was as a patrolman in Edina, a suburb of Minneapolis. I was 21 years of age and could not apply to the Minneapolis department because the age of application was 23 at the time. My training consisted of riding with a sergeant for a week. When I returned to work, my sergeant gave me the keys to a squad car, a ticket book, city map, and statute book. I was on my own. After two years in Edina, and now being 23 years of age, I applied for and was hired by Minneapolis. I worked as a patrol and tactical officer, member of the police diving team, training officer in defensive tactics (I had a black belt in Taekwondo). Shortly after I received my B.A. degree I was promoted to detective. I was accepted into graduate school and was working on my master’s degree in sociology when the city manager of Burnsville asked me if I wanted to become their new public safety director (which included the duties of both police and fire chief). After four years at Burnsville where we piloted neighborhood policing, a bachelor’s degree entrance requirement, and non-military style uniforms (blazers and slacks), I applied for and was selected to be Madison’s new chief of police after nearly a year-long process.

How did your black belt in Taekwondo help you in your law enforcement career?
I have intensely practiced the Asian martial arts of Judo, Taekwondo, Kendo, and the Japanese sword. What I found when I joined the police was that these arts helped me keep calm in the face of challenge and danger on the street and, when off-duty, balanced my life and kept me fit. These arts gave me confidence that I didn’t have to rely on a firearm to get the job done. I spent a good part of my career teaching defensive tactics to police based on these arts. I am as surprised today as I was a half-century ago that police do not consider these arts to be essential skills and as important for them as combat shooting skills. I wondered then, and I still wonder today, why a police officer would go out onto the street without being expert or at least highly-qualified in these skills. I guess what I am really talking about in my book is the kind of man and woman personified in the Japanese concept of “bushido”: loyal duty, justice, compassion, complete sincerity, honor, polite courtesy, and heroic courage.

Why do you think a college education is important for law enforcement professionals to obtain?
The job is simply too important and complex to be left to those without an advanced education. Policing is too important in a democracy such as ours to be left to those who have not had the benefit of a broad liberal arts education. That is why I am opposed to narrow law enforcement education curricula. Instead, I want cops who know history, art, psychology, law and other disciplines which make up an education in the liberal arts.

Why did you write your book and what is the main message that you want to communicate?
After I left policing to answer a call to ordained ministry in the Episcopal Church I thought policing in our country was on the move. We had attracted more educated candidates, they were more representative of America’s diversity and community-oriented and problem-oriented policing seemed to be the norm. But that didn’t happen. September 11, 2001 changed everything. I believe police can be much better than they appear to be. They can be protectors of our social under-class and defenders of the Bill of Rights. Police should be the glue that holds a diverse society together. And in my book, I outline the seven steps that are necessary in order to make that happen.

What qualities or skills do you think are important for candidates to possess in order to get hired and be successful in this field?
This is what I outlined to the graduating class of the first officers I hired in Madison. These expectations, qualities and skills should apply to all police officers who serve in a free society:

Employ your full skill at all times and to all persons. Prevent, manage, or intervene in situations requiring police service. Be open, accept change in this changing world, develop and maintain a broad perspective of your function and the society in which you work, be flexible and develop the ability to grow with the people you serve.

What advice would you give to new recruits who are just starting out in their careers?
Continue your education and the development of you police skills. Be open and flexible, think and grow. Develop a life and friends outside of police – it will keep you sane. I would also add what my first training officer told me: “Remember, Couper, everything that was illegal and wrong before you put on a badge will still be illegal and wrong.”

Where can people find information on your upcoming book?
Look for it on Amazon.com in April. In the meantime, follow my blog, “Improving Police” at http://improvingpolice.wordpress.com.

We thank Chief Couper for taking the time to share his insights with our audience. If you are interested in learning more about earning a degree, head over to our law enforcement degree page.

The controversial nature of file sharing on the Internet has slipped in and out of the cyber law spotlight every since the rise and fall of Napster. Now, with the shuttering of file-sharing giant Megaupload, many believe the end of the industry has finally arrived.

Megaupload is (was) the largest file-sharing website in the world, allowing users to upload and download digital media of every type including music, movies, video games and software programs. The site was shut down January 20, 2012, when FBI agents and US Department of Justice apprehended company leadership in Auckland, New Zealand, including the site’s founder, Kim Dotcom.

There are many similar file-sharing websites across the Internet and all of them share the same legitimate function of providing a way for owners of content to store, send and receive large files via the Internet without having to rely on personal digital storage devices, or slower email or conventional mail services when transmitting data.

Anti-piracy advocates and lawmakers argue these sites are too easily abused by people who are only interested in gaining access to free digital media – and Megaupload prosecutors agree. The two-year investigation uncovered $175 million in criminal proceeds gained from the venture, including Dotcom’s New Zealand mansion and dozens of luxury automobiles.

Although jurisdictional concerns are satisfied by the fact that Megaupload used servers located in Virginia and Washington, D.C., and otherwise “touched” consumers in the US, and prosecutors will likely have no problem proving the defendants had knowledge of their involvement in the trade of pirated material, problems remain.

A chief concern is if Megaupload will be shielded by the safe harbor law found in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. More specifically, there is a question regarding whether Dotcom and his associates can be held accountable for the illegal conduct of Megaupload’s users. Legal pundits believe the Justice Department’s attempt to also charge the defendants with racketeering and money laundering may be a sign that evidence is lacking.

Even so, other file-sharing websites are taking notice, with many of them closing voluntarily in order to avoid attracting unwanted criminal charges, despite the fact that many users of these sites do so legally and are facing increasing problems with retrieving their digital property.

-> Learn about a Computer Forensics Degree

We recently interviewed Barbara Liss, the president of the Santa Barbara Paralegal Association. She shared some great insights into the variety of tasks that a paralegal career may involve, what it is like to work on a trial, and advice for new paralegals looking for their first position.

How did you get started in the paralegal field?

When I first moved to California in 1972, I managed the apartment building in which I lived. The owner liked me and hired me to work in his office; after reorganizing it in short order, he ran out of work to give me, so introduced me to a friend, who was an attorney, just starting up a general solo practice after having made a mid-life career change. We learned procedural work together. When he left solo practice to accept a position with a large, downtown Los Angeles firm, I accompanied him — it was the mid-1970′s and my title was then “legal secretary,” although much of what I did was paralegal work. Eventually, I took my first position as a paralegal, where the title was “pseudo-paralegal” because the firm was afraid to use the actual title.

After bouncing between legal secretary and legal assistant/paralegal jobs, I took the UCSB extension legal assistant program classes at night and acquired my certificate. When I started working in complex business trial litigation, I took the title “trial paralegal.” By the mid-1980′s word processing and secretarial work were more specifically the realm of legal secretaries and word processors while working with evidence, discovery and witnesses in preparation for and attending trial were more clearly defined as paralegal work assignments, the field in which I worked. After 35 years of prepping for and attending complex civil litigation trials in state and federal courts, I changed the direction of my career and transitioned into Wills, Trusts, Probate and Estate Administration work, where I currently practice and have done so for the past five years.

What do you like the most about working as a paralegal?

I have always been slightly obsessive/compulsive and paying attention to the nuance and detail of procedural work is satisfying for me. I often compare the job of a paralegal to that of a stage manager of a play — we are the folks who make sure that everything goes forward without a hitch, knowing where the props are supposed to be and when, giving cues and lowering the curtain at the appropriate time. Always dressed in black, working behind the scenes, hardly ever noticed, we ensure the smooth running of the machinery of the production; filled with the myriad details in a way that few are ever truely aware. We affect the outcome in an extremely significant way. We work in stealth, in often unrecognized contributions that may appear small when taken individually, but which have enormous ripple effect in the aggregate. I gain intrinsic satisfaction from the knowledge that my work produces this benefit.

Can you describe some of the main activities that you spend a lot of time on at work?

I currently work for a solo practitioner whose main focus is Wills, Trusts, Estate Administration, Conservatorships and Real Property. Because of this, my work is quite varied. In addition to paralegal work, I am the office administrator. I have a great deal of direct client contact and will be involved in reassuring clients who are stressed and in need of explanations about what to expect during the time we are working on a matter for them. I review, edit and finalize estate plan documents and prepare them for signing appointments. I am also a notary public and act in that capacity often. I prepare probate pleadings for court filing and communicate with court personnel directly quite often. I solve problems and more often, give attention to details to prevent them from occuring in the first place.

When dealing with trust and estate disputes for clients, I am often asked to draft pleadings, conduct legal research and prepare memoranda on various factual and legal subjects. I prepare much of the correspondence that goes out of our office as well.

I supervise our assistant who handles our files, telephone, reception and court run duties.

I communicate with and problem solve for our vendors, our bookkeeping staff and the tenants who rent space in our offices.

I also handle some internal administrative duties, including inputting of monthly costs and charges, keeping the computer system up to date and creating pre-bills and client billing statements. When clients have questions with regard to their bills, I answer them.

Previously, as a complex business litigation paralegal, my duties were similarly weighty. I was often the person who met with potential new clients to interview and gather facts, analyze them and then prepare memoranda to suggest whether sufficient liability and damages existed to justify taking on a case. Working for a boutique office that specialized in complex business litigation, established case parameters made determining the type of cases accepted by the office understood and easy to recommend or suggest to be declined.

Assigned as a member of a litigation team to each case, I was on most from inception, although I was sometimes brought onto special cases within the 100 days prior to trial, to ready them. If involved in early stages of litigation, I would participate in fact investigation, evidence gathering, drafting of pleadings, interviewing witnesses, preparing discovery, discovery responses, motion practice, meet and confer correspondence, disclosures required by federal practice rules, calendar supervision and deadline tracking, and supporting pre-trial motion practice, such as summary judgment motions and their oppositions. I was given legal research assignments and participated in drafting various pleadings.

I often attended depositions, summarized transcripts and served as a case manager charged with establishing document management systems for cases involving enormous volumes of documents. In the early days of doing this work, this was done with manual systems, but later as computerized systems and software were developed, we shifted to using those instead and I was trained in many of them.

I coordinated trial preparations, witness subpoena service and tracking, trial book preparations, preparing trial evidence for introduction at trial and readying the files for transport to the courtroom. I coordinated with courtroom personnel, IT support and vendors for the preparation and presentation of demonstrative evidence. I sat at counsel table with the attorneys and participated in voir dire of potential jurors. I hung out in courthouse restrooms to overhear juror conversations. I dragged boxes of exhibits and binders back and forth between courthouses and cars and cars and rented spaces during trials. I stayed up nights and marked deposition transcripts, called witnesses by phone; photocopied at Kinko’s at 3 in the morning. I sewed lawyers’ pants when they split and arranged for food deliveries. I memorized facts and rules of evidence and deposition testimony, calling details to the attention of my attorneys and pointing to page and line references constantly.

I worked 14 to 18 hour days, six days a week for months on end at incredibly long trials for years. After the trials were over, I worked with the attorneys to interview jurors, courtroom personnel and witnesses to learn what could be learned about how to do it better, differently. I rested briefly, then started all over again.

Can you share an interesting case that you worked on and what your role was?

The very first jury trial I worked on was Lumbermans v. Union Bank, a case that altered bank lending practices in California. Prior to that case, lender liability virtually didn’t exist and bank clientele were in an unbalanced negotiating position when seeking loans and signing documentation with banking institutions. As a result of that case, the burden shifted and financial institutions became far more accountable for disclosure of terms and resulting liability when entering into lending transactions with their banking clients.

It was the first time I was permitted to enter the well of the court and sit at counsel table — there was quite a little discussion with the judge about it during the preliminary “housekeeping” motions and discussions, but the judge determined that I’d be useful from a practical standpoint, so I was granted permission to be allowed to “pass the bar.”

I tracked potential jurors during voir dire by using post-its on a legal pad where a hand drawn chart of the jury was sketched out, pulling off post-its as peremptory challenges were exercised and scrawling new notes as replacements were seated. I watched faces, body language and reactions of the persons of whom questions were asked and those around them; I noticed what the courtroom personnel did and how they responded; I watched opposing counsel and their assistants. I took copious notes and reported everything I saw during breaks.

In 1980, documentary evidence was organized and introduced manually, in paper form. No computerized organizational systems were used. We didn’t project images, we presented duplicate copies of each document to each juror, to whom we gave individual binders in which to keep them.

The chain of evidence was carefully maintained so that each document could be authenticated by source, creator and unaltered condition when presented to the court at time of trial. Duplicates were hand Bates numbered and organized chronologically, topically and by witness in binders and in loose manila files for presentation at trial. I worked with the court clerk staff and opposing counsel in marking, introducing, and tracking all evidence.

I also kept track of witness subpoena status, ran to telephone booths in the hallways (no cell phones yet) and kept witnesses apprised of scheduling changes; I communicated with the firm’s office to gain assistance of associates for research assignments and staff for fact research help. I ran to the law library and made copies of cases and statutes (no laptop or internet access was then available).

I coordinated with copy services and expert witnesses, with vendors who provided enlargements of photographs and other demonstrative evidence and made sure that everything was where it needed to be when it needed to be.

In the end, I was the stage manager — the role I played for every trial in which I participated from that time forward.

What qualities or skills do you think are important for being successful as a paralegal?

• Organization, organization, organization!
• Learn to not take it personally — recognize that whatever it is, it’s usually NOT about you (even if it seems like it is).
• Roll with it — flexibility is a skill; learn to stretch as well as bend.
• Take care of yourself and be self-aware; get as much sleep as you can – being sharp takes brain cells!
• Learn to separate your office relationships from your personal life; trench mentality can muddle your thinking. Returning to the real world after a trial can be a shocker.
• Get it in writing! Do not proceed unless any and all instructions are in writing, via letter, email or post it. If you’re given verbal instructions, confirm them in writing. This will prove invaluable should any incongruity about what the assignment was arise.
• Proofreading – Don’t rely on spell check to do the work–it doesn’t catch everything! Print it out and read it out loud. If it’s legalese or a legal description, have a second set of eye on it besides your own.
• Know your client – You can’t protect/defend what you don’t know/understand.
• Check/double check your deadlines. The last thing you need or want is a missed deadline. When in doubt, be conservative.
• Always have a backup plan (especially for really important projects). No one wants to hear excuses, they only want to hear your solution to the problem.
• Find a mentor from within your own ranks – we are invaluable to one another (and then once you’ve got your feet under you, be one to someone else! Pay it forward.)

What is the outlook for paralegal jobs in the Santa Barbara area?

Santa Barbara has a small legal community and sometimes finding employment here can be difficult because living here is so desireable and in demand. There has been expansion and contraction in step with more macro economic circumstances and at present, I think it is harder to find work here than it might be in a larger environment, such as Los Angeles or San Francisco. As well, there can be a provincial attitude among some of the more staid practices, which are reticent to offer substantive assignments to paralegals. However, my experience is that there are always those who are able to establish confidence in their skills, knowledge and talents have proven themselves able to forge a road through some of those attitudes and earn respect which translates into job satisfaction and career opportunities.

What tips would you give to new paralegals for getting hired at a job they want?

Do some inward reflection with honesty and objectivity. Usually, we are our own worst enemy and set our own limitations before anyone else does.

Quietude and patience are difficult but worth it. Sometimes what you want is worth waiting for. But it often doesn’t come to you — you have to go after it.

Attention to detail, nuance and minutia can make all the difference in the world. I don’t think being anal/retentive is a bad thing!

We thank President Liss for being so generous with her time and sharing her story with us. To learn more about a career in the paralegal field see our paralegal career center.

The US Supreme Court has ruled that law enforcement agents may not use GPS tracking devices to gather evidence on suspects under investigation, although the ruling still leaves many questions for criminal justice professionals.

The ruling is a response to a challenge filed in a lower-court case involving the tracking of Antoine Jones, a man previously convicted of drug trafficking. That conviction was overturned with the Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling; however, the three-way split among justices in their reasoning leaves much to be considered in the application of the new precedent.

Some legal analysts and those who support more sweeping surveillance techniques argue the ruling is an announcement to the law enforcement community that electronic tracking of any kind without a warrant will be challenged and that the ruling severely limits the capability of police officers and federal agents to fight crime.

Privacy advocates and other legal scholars, however, argue the ruling is too narrow and may only be construed to apply to the act of trespassing when attaching a GPS device to a vehicle for tracking purposes. Justice Sonia Sotomayor echoed these concerns in her portion of the opinion, noting that the ruling may not specifically apply to other instances of tracking that do not involve a physical invasion of privacy.

The larger legal implication is one that involves not only GPS tracking devices, but any device that can be used to track the whereabouts of citizens including mobile devices, personal GPS devices and antitheft devices installed in vehicles or electronics.

The high court acknowledged that all of the issues that arise in the clash between Fourth Amendment rights to a “reasonable expectation of privacy” and the increasing pervasiveness of technology would not be addressed by the ruling. Even so, most agree it sent a strong message to the US Justice Department and other agencies seeking more surveillance latitude that limits will be imposed.

-> Learn about a law enforcement degree

The Internet has become a fertile ground for copyright infringement and other forms of piracy involving intellectual property, and the US government’s latest answer is the introduction of legislation known as the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect Intellectual Piracy Act (PIPA).

These two measures, both of which are supported by law enforcement organizations, hope to help curb incidences of online piracy occurring from foreign locations by giving rights holders more power to challenge alleged infringers in court as well as anyone doing business with the infringing website – including payment processors, ad companies and even search engines.

Both bills have seen recent revision as challenges against their passage mount, including an announcement by President Barack Obama that he would not support SOPA. The main concerns are that unproven allegations of infringement could cause unnecessary damage to innocent Web businesses, false allegations may be used as a tool to stifle competition and overload court dockets, and that it saps the resources of Web entities by turning them into unwitting Internet gatekeepers.

And, this is ostensibly why law enforcement agencies support the measures. Tracking and investigating Internet piracy is a time-consuming and costly activity, and one that drains criminal justice resources that could be used to combat greater threats. In addition to this benefit, the Acts also pertain to counterfeit goods and medications sold online, which would also help law enforcement agents.

Internet-wide protests, however, are already changing the trajectory of both bills. Three co-sponsors of the bills (one for PIPA and two for SOPA) have already announced their shift in support in light of a viral campaign against the legislation that included the voluntary blackout of Wikipedia, Reddit, Fark and thousands of other websites in opposition to the bills.

The rift between supporters and opponents seems to be a disagreement over power and enforcement rather than one over the unacceptability of piracy and copyright infringement. Only time will tell whether the bills move forward, and in what form if they do.

-> Learn about a Law Enforcement Degree

Law enforcement professionals hold one of the most dangerous jobs in the United States, and 2011 saw yet another increase in police officer fatalities.

The National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial Fund has released its preliminary fatality report for 2011, and it indicates a 13% increase in deaths from last year to 173.

This represents a year-on-year increase for law enforcement fatalities. The profession found itself in the Top 10 most dangerous jobs in the country, joining the ranks of more well-known high-risk careers like logging and mining.

A radical jump in deaths at the outset of the year had many in law enforcement believing there was an unofficial declaration of ‘war on cops’ in America. A rash of 11 officer shootings within a 24-hour period around the nation in January 2011 prompted worry that a larger criminal enterprise was at work.

The concern over widespread criminal coordination was not proven out, but increased budget cuts throughout the year seemed to undermine law enforcement professionals’ ability to address a clear threat to officer safety. Some who lost loved ones cited training cutbacks and delayed equipment upgrades as signs that not enough was being done to protect troopers.

The rising death toll has not gone unnoticed. The US Justice Department has noted that police officer deaths were in decline for the two years prior to 2010 and is now asking questions about what has changed. The only conclusion that has been drawn thus far is that there are no firm answers to explain the increase.

That there is no one clear answer points to the likelihood that it is a culmination of many factors. Hard economic times, a greater prevalence of gun ownership and a leaner law enforcement presence are just a few elements that may have contributed to the increase.

-> Learn about a Law Enforcement Degree

President Barack Obama’s new vision for the US military will involve less spending and more technology as warfare merges more completely with the digital age.

Cyber warfare is fast becoming a part of the US global defense strategy, and threats to the country’s network infrastructure are as likely to originate domestically as they are internationally. Last year saw the most cyber attacks ever recorded in history, and experts believe the threat will only get larger as the world grows more dependent on technology.

President Obama’s plan to reduce force strength and shift the focus to more peripheral defense strategies is not new following the drawdown of a conflict. What is new is that the Pentagon appears to finally be shifting away from the long sought-after capability to maintain two theaters of war at one time, and instead focus on a nimble, more technologically advanced fighting force.

This will require superiority in the arena of cybersecurity, something most recently proved by Iran’s alleged ability to “spoof” an advanced top-secret US spy drone by overriding its onboard guidance program to take control of it. Although the allegation is still debated, what is known is that the threat is real and that Iran is now in possession of the drone.

Critics claim the size reduction is entirely driven by budget concerns, and while budget is always a consideration the president’s plan only reflects the Pentagon’s broader interest in refocusing resources on advanced threats, many of which are technology-based. Cyber warfare is the new frontier, and that fact remains unrelated to what many see as controversial personnel cuts.

The good news is that the new strategy will open up doors for more cybersecurity professionals and retraining opportunities for troops that will prove beneficial in peacetime due to the overlap in needed skills found in the civilian sector.

-> Learn about a Cybersecurity Degree

We were very fortunate to have the opportunity to interview Mariana Fradman who is the President of the New York City Paralegal Association Inc. and an accomplished real estate paralegal who also holds a master’s in business administration. We discussed what it was like to become a paralegal after immigrating from Ukraine, what her job is like, and her advice for paralegals.

Can you tell us what inspired you to go into the legal field and how you got your first job as a paralegal?

I would disappoint many people, but I wasn’t inspired by anything or anyone to go into the legal field. The legal field “found” me. After I finished English Second Language (ESL) course at New York Association for New Americans (NYANA), I was at a crosswalk: majority of immigrants from the former U.S.S.R. entered the computer science field or medical field. None of those appealed to me. I don’t like to deal with blood, bones and muscles and anatomy was never my favorite subject (although I was an A student ). I also was skeptical of how many programmers the country needed (had a good vision – remember dot.com?). So, I went to Long Island University (LIU) for another semester of English. In one of the classes I met a former psychiatrist from Kiev who gave me an advise: “Buy any newspaper, open “help wanted” section, close your eyes and put your finger on the page. Open your eyes and see what you picked. Go and learn the skill for one year. In a year, you will know if the choice was right or not, but for a year, you will be busy doing something and it would give you a piece of mind.” I didn’t follow his advise step by step, but went to a college’s admission office, walked to a display with brochures of different majors that were offered at that time and, with my eyes closed, picked one. It had information about the Paralegal Studies Program. I didn’t join it at LIU due to the cost, but, with a recommendation of another student, went a few blocks down and applied for the same program at NYC Technical College, CUNY College that charged much less. “Lucky” me, I didn’t pass an entrance exam (passed math at the calculus level, but failed reading and writing). It took me additional two semesters of ESL to pass the reading portion, but I was still struggling with the writing course. At that time, I “tricked” my advisor. The Intro to Paralegal Studies required students to be proficient in Reading as a pre-requisite. The catalog didn’t say anything about writing, so, I was able to register for the class. On the first day of class, the professor asked if everyone passed all entrance exams. I kept my head low. Professor Lise Hunter was the best teacher for an intro class I could dream about. She explained everything down to the core and I had no problems with understanding her or doing my work. After midterm she called me to her office and told me that she knew that I didn’t pass the writing test and that the catalog had a typo. However, she saw my work and dedication and didn’t raise the flag. She kept me in the class that I passed with one of the highest marks. Through the program, I had great instructors. One of them, Professor Charles Coleman, became my mentor. I registered for three of his classes (some students thought that I lost my mind as he wasn’t an easy one to please). I just loved his system that, in reality, was very easy: follow the rules and be detail oriented. He gave me a taste of the profession. I worked as his paralegal on many pro bono cases at the Divorce Clinic. So, at the end of the first year in the program, I knew that I am doing something right. I told myself: the brochure I picked up at LIU said that by the year of 2000, there will be 140% increase in demand for paralegals. I don’t know about 139, but I can fit in the last 1%: I have a second language (that is actually my first), this country is a country of immigrants, so, somebody would need my skills one day. I took a bankruptcy course as extra curriculum as someone would file for bankruptcy. I took immigration and international laws as extra curriculum as well…

I got my first job as a paralegal during my last semester getting my Associate Degree in Paralegal Studies. Professor Hunter was my internship supervisor and she sent me to a small law office in Brooklyn. The internship was for 120 hours that had to be completed in 14 weeks. I made a point to finish it in six (6) weeks, so I was in the office four days a week putting in 20 hours per week. I was hired on my last day of internship as the matrimonial paralegal walked away that day. Talk about being in the right place at the right time!

I wanted to be a patent and trademarks paralegal (I had a degree in engineering, didn’t I?), but couldn’t break in – didn’t have connections. My first degree connection solidified when I had almost 10 years of experience in real estate law. By that time, I didn’t think about changing the practice area anymore.

As an immigrant who moved to the United States from Ukraine in 1992, what was it like for you to adjust to a new country and attend college to become a paralegal?

To say that it wasn’t easy is to say too little. I had to learn new language, new culture and became a student again. The college structure in the United States is different of what I was accustomed to. For example, I had the same classmates through most of my classes in Ukraine compared to here where in each class I had different people and by the time I knew them, I had my finals and chances that I won’t be with them in my next class were great. My classmates were students who could be my children’s friends, my age or even my parents age. In one of my classes, I had a mother and a daughter studying together. You won’t find that in Ukraine.

Some professors invited students to call them by first name. That never happened in Ukraine or any of other countries in former U.S.S.R.

I never saw a teacher sitting on a table back in Ukraine We had a very strict discipline in school: no walking around or eating/drinking in class. Attendance was mandatory.

My biggest shock was at one of my ESL classes where a topic was something about clothing. Don’t remember exactly what happened, but one of students didn’t understand the word “undershirt” and a professor just unbuttoned his shirt and showed it. Can’t imagine what it would be if the word in question would be…”underwear”.

When I started to take paralegal classes, I tried to “fit” them into my background and engineering skills. Wasn’t easy, but, I was able to “break” them into manageable pieces. For example, the court system: what was the same and what was different? Documents drafting: any analogy? The most easiest and rewarding class was real estate and especially the part about the survey review. I felt like a fish in the water.

What do you enjoy about working in real estate law?

Paperwork I like to organize my work. To put all parts in order and piece them together. I started as a matrimonial paralegal and, as much as I like to work with people, I was burned out by people we represented. I was getting upset that I had to smile to a client just because he is a client even if he (or she) was an abusive spouse (parent) or a cheater. Shopping malls don’t cheat and a hotel chain won’t abuse anyone. The work is straight forward. I can’t say that there are no emotions involved, but they are different. I like to see the fruits of my labor: a clean title, new entities organized and documents recorded in a right order. The real estate doesn’t have a rush of excitement of winning a case in a court, but it has its own beauty of hard work involved with all preparations to closings and successful closings.

Can you describe what a typical work day looks like for you in your current position?

I really can’t There are no two days alike. One day would start with drafts of documents for upcoming closings and another with ordering lien searches or forming entities. You can find me drafting UCCs or being on a phone with a title company “cleaning” titles or chasing a surveyor who is “out in a field” second week in a row when I need some minor changes to a survey for a closing tomorrow. Or, I can have a boring day compiling documents and preparing closing binder. On another day, I will sit in a closing room passing down documents for execution or notarizing boxes and boxes of documents and checking that we have all necessary documents executed (with a right color – yes, some counties require blue (or black) ink only or even both).

How many hours do you work in a typical week?

When we are busy (and December is one of those months), the week could be 50 hours and more. When real estate was on the top on the hill, 50-55 hours week was a norm all year around. I had some all-nighters, but I had slow weeks too. It all depends on the economy and how your office operates.

Can you give us an example of an interesting case or project that you have worked on and your role in helping to achieve a positive outcome?

A few years ago, I was assigned to a project where we represented a buyer of more than 150 properties in more than 20 states. In addition to buying, we had a borrowing and a leaseback components on this deal (a leaseback is when a new owner leases the property back to a seller). I assisted a team of three attorneys and a partner. Just to give you a taste of what we went through: the final closing binder was more than 70 3 inch volumes of binders with documents. Surveys that were reviewed could possibly cover all grass in the Central Park in Manhattan. I was keeping track of all searches and title and surveys revisions. The post-closing summary of UCCs had over 700 UCCs in different states and counties. The day we closed, I felt like a winner of a million dollar lottery.

Why did you decide to get your Master’s in Business Administration and how has this helped you in your career?

I felt that I needed something more…I didn’t want to go to law school. After a few years of being a paralegal, I knew for sure that I want to be a paralegal, but lacked knowledge in how business run in the United States. In addition, the economy started to slide down and I wanted to have something in my hands in case my job would be in jeopardy.

I went to online school as it was the only one what fit into my schedule. I don’t regret a day of it. Where else would you be able to go to class at 2 am in the morning? I met people from across the country and across the globe. The best teachers were my classmates. They shared their practical knowledge in addition to their cultural differences. My teachers/professors were people who worked during the day. I remember an ad I saw in NYC subway a few years ago (about the different colleges and using different words, but with the same meaning): “Our teacher left his office 10 minutes ago, when did yours?” Those were my teachers.

The paralegal job is not only about the law. It is about the business. Only well educated paralegals are able to manage a day full of different assignments. You don’t need to be a corporate paralegal to know about corporate structure. I learned more about technology and how an office works. I learned about advertisement and marketing. I learned finances and how to deal with different personalities. One of the examples is that during the conference call with a client the only part that I wasn’t familiar with was when he chatted about golf with my partner while awaiting for all parties to join . Prior to getting my MBA, I would probably be completely lost at that call.

What advice would you give to students or paralegals who would like to reach your level of success in the area of real estate law?

Never stop learning. I worked as a commercial real estate paralegal at Blank Rome LLP for over eight years. On January 9, 2012, I will start as a commercial real estate paralegal at Chadbourne & Parke LLP. Sounds the same, doesn’t it? However, the group I am joining assists with energy projects and this is something that I never did before. People who don’t know the subject matter will say that “real estate” is always a “real estate”. But it is not true. There is a huge difference between residential and commercial real estate, between representation of a lender and a borrower, a buyer and a seller, selling of a multifamily project and shopping mall, or buying an office building and a hotel chain. Yes, the basic provisions are the same, but there are many nuances that need to be taken into consideration: the title, the survey, the lien searches, zoning regulations, entities status, etc., etc.

The real estate paralegal is the one who, in addition to a real estate law, has to know corporate and lien laws, be well vested in technology, able to find information, detail oriented and organized. He or she can’t afford to miss a deadline for recording documents or forget about lien search. And, the real estate paralegal should be a people person as he or she will be dealing with many different personalities. He or she needs to be a person who attracts others and be willing to share knowledge. The more you give, the more your get.

In addition to the above, I recommend joining a local paralegal association. Membership will expand your network, introduce to new fields and help you to grow professionally and personally. Membership will make your paralegal career interesting as it provides many ways and opportunities to stay involved through CLE classes, pro bono work or leadership positions. I also highly recommend to join The Paralegal Society (TPS): a group of professional paralegals and mentors with a goal to assist students and recent graduates, “a forum created to educate, motivate and inspire paralegals to engage in the pursuit of excellence for all paralegalkind”.

You will become a professional only if you combine your knowledge, professionalism and personal traits together.

We want to thank President Fradman for sharing her experience and advice with us. To learn more about becoming a paralegal see our paralegal career interviews and our paralegal degree center.

The results of a study conducted among North American police officers from 2005 to 2007 reveal that a significant portion of law enforcement professionals suffer from sleep disorders that can impair health and job performance.

The research was spearheaded by Shantha M. W. Rajaratnam, Ph.D., at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The study represents data collected from 4,957 police officers in the United States and Canada using a combination of online surveys and in-person screening.

Forty percent of police officers were found to suffer from some type of sleep disorder, most commonly disruptive sleep apnea, insomnia or shift work disorder – a problem prevalent in people who rotate into and out of work schedules during typical sleeping hours. These types of disorders affect as scheduled hours, and the pressure to meet these demands is high.

The bigger problem, say experts, is that the increased responsibility faced by law enforcement professionals leaves less room for error; particularly the types of errors that result from sleep deprivation. Fatigue can lead to poor driving, slower response times, increased administrative errors and physical health problems, all of which can contribute to more haphazard law enforcement performance.

And, the problem is likely to persist. Growing state and federal budgetary constraints will translate to more working hours for police officers, even while national unrest over a struggling economy and perceived social injustices continues to mount. There is no simple answer other than to hope law enforcement professionals get the rest they need to keep much-needed peace during troubled times.
many as 70 million Americans, although often the issue is never diagnosed.

Doctors involved in the study noted that Americans live in a fast-paced culture that often views needing sleep as a sign of weakness, and that this attitude is magnified in the law enforcement community. Police officers are frequently asked to work extra shifts, change schedules and stay on duty beyond.

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As cybercrime becomes more aggressive, so must the tools used to combat it.

California is the newest state to introduce an “eCrime Unit” into its arsenal of law enforcement, and it is aiming to set a new standard in its comprehensive approach to fighting cyber criminals.

The new task force will focus on five different areas of cybercrime including online fraud, identity theft and child exploitation, real-world hardware theft and intellectual property crimes, and will involve coordination between state and federal law enforcement departments when necessary.

Anti-virus software manufacturer Symantec estimates cybercrime affected 431 million people and cost businesses and government entities $338 billion in 2011. California’s estimated losses due to identity theft alone amounted to $46 million last year, and the 20 investors and prosecutors assigned to the new eCrime Unit hope to significantly reduce losses within the state as well as losses elsewhere that are caused by crimes that originate in California.

Although its existence was only announced recently, the unit began its operations in August and has already succeeded in sending one hacker to prison and shutting down an ATM scam that netted $2 million before the suspects were detected.

The new unit, which has the authority to operate statewide, will not act as a replacement for or hindrance to the development of regional resources in the fight against cybercrime. The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office was recently awarded a $200,000 grant by the US Department of Justice to beef up its local cybercrime operation and help to develop better relationships with technology firms to improve security coordination.

Cyber-security is becoming more important as more of the world’s business, banking and commerce data are shifted to the cloud, and more transactions become dependent upon the use of networks and third-party servers with which there is not tangible connection. California may be the first state to invest in such a broad-spectrum cybercrime program, but it will not be the last.

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