The Estrin Report

Trends: Brand New Resume Writing Tool Is Wave of the Future

2009-07-16T17:31:55-07:00

Margaret Agius is a rock solid paralegal. But after ten years with a major Detroit law firm, she was laid off from her job as a products liability specialist. Since then, this lively, smart and well-educated paralegal has had difficulty...

Top DOJ Paralegal Fired for Whistleblowing

2009-07-09T12:37:32-07:00

According to the Huffington Post, new questions are surfacing about political intrigue at the U.S. Justice Department after former White House political strategist Karl Rove provided his long-awaited responses to House Judiciary Committee staff Tuesday about allegations that he pressured...

15 Warning Signs Your Firm May Be Laying Off Staff

2009-07-09T12:03:18-07:00

The Wall Street Journal Blog this morning reported that DLA Piper on Wednesday laid off 121 people — 21 lawyers and 100 staffers. The news bring the total number of layoffs at DLA to 440 in the U.S. and U.K....

New Book, eDiscovery Plain & Simple, is Helpful for Paralegals

2009-07-06T18:48:59-07:00

A new book, "eDiscovery Plain & Simple", has just arrived in bookstores. Written by Shawnna Childress, Executive Director and co-Founder of Women in eDiscovery and Allison Brecher, Senior Litigation Counsel and Director of Information Management and Strategy, Marsh & McLennan...

Former Paralegal Uses Skills to Become Chief of Police - In Liberia

2009-07-03T13:02:16-07:00

A 41-year old Liberian and former paralegal at a 50-attorney Washington, D.C. law firm has been appointed the Liberian Inspector-General by President Sirleaf. According to allafrica.com, Marc Amblard faced tremendous criticism about questionable skill sets necessary for the position. His...

New 2009 Paralegal Survey Released from IPMA and Incisive Media

2009-06-28T00:29:37-07:00

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Incisive Legal Intelligence, a leading source of business intelligence for the legal profession, in partnership with the International Paralegal Management Association (IPMA), today announced the release of the Annual Compensation Survey for Paralegals/Legal Assistants and Managers, 2009 Edition,...

Stealth But Powerful Paralegal Organization Celebrates 25th Birthday

2009-06-10T10:04:40-07:00

This year is the 25th anniversary of the International Paralegal Management Association (IPMA). Surprisingly, not everyone has heard of this influential and powerful association, even after all these years. In fact, compared to associations such as NFPA and NALA, it...

Life Gets Easier: Google Introduces The Next Evolution of E-Mail?

2009-06-05T00:09:56-07:00

Imagine making e-mail slicker, faster and easier to use. Apparently, Google imagined that too. Today, Google announced Google Wave what will probably become the next new e-mail. Wave is an ambitious new communication platform. It seeks to replace many of...

Paralegal Buys Law Practice from Elderly Lawyer for $20.00

2009-05-29T19:42:40-07:00

This goes right up there in the "Hall of Shame" red file. According to the ABA Journal (quoting from the Orange County Register in Orange County, CA), a paralegal "bought" a law practice valued at $750,000 from an elderly, 84-year-old...

Paralegal Salaries Slashed by 20% at Prestigious Firm

2009-05-26T18:13:18-07:00

Above the Law, the gossip blogloid (that previously has pretty much scoffed, jeered and laughed at paralegals) printed a sobering story today. Apparently, the law firm of Allen Matkins, known for its quality reputation in real estate law, rounded up...

Paralegal Arrested for Robbing Peter to Pay Paul

2009-05-19T04:23:33-07:00

A former paralegal has been arrested for allegedly stealing from one firm to pay another. The paralegal allegedly stole over $100,000 from the Norristown, PA firm of High Schwartz to repay $285,000 to a New York firm. According to the...

Paralegal Denied Permission to Speak at Conference - New Trend?

2009-05-18T14:06:54-07:00

Here's an interesting development regarding confidentiality and risk management: A very good friend of mine, let's call him/her Leslie (a unisex name), was asked to speak at the Paralegal Technology Institute at Legal Tech in Los Angeles. Now, Leslie is...

In Pursuit of Freedom: The Peter Kirchikov Story

2009-05-13T17:43:03-07:00

We have never given just bits and pieces in this blog nor teased you with a story in KNOW. However, I wanted to share with you a bit of the upcoming issue. Occasionally, we run across stories that move your...

Associate Job Losses May Mean Paralegal Job Gains

2009-05-06T22:43:04-07:00

This is the second time this week I read an article about paralegals gaining jobs in this miserable economy. OK, it's not miserable for absolutely everyone. But if you're watching Katie or Brian on the BigNews channels, you'll have to...

Virtual Paralegal Jobs: This One Pays Up to $100k

2009-05-04T23:55:00-07:00

I must be in the wrong business. Today, I spotted an ad for a "Partial Telecommute Paralegal" who can work from home. The paralegal must be experienced in litigation, contracts, tort and workers compensation. The salary? $35,000 - $100,000 per...

Survey Points to Increased Use of Paralegals in In-House Legal Depts.

2009-04-28T12:42:50-07:00

There's good news out there in LegalLand. According to The Pittsburgh Business Times, the Association for Corporate Counsel conducted its ninth annual survey of in-house legal departments and found that more than half surveyed are feeling the pinch from tough...

Do Something Good During These Tough Times and Pay It Forward

2009-04-21T16:33:32-07:00

By Loni Morganelli American Paralegal in London While the loss of a job can leave us feeling down and out, volunteer work in the legal industry can offer us a bit of positive relief. One of the most well-known pro...

Smart Battles

2009-04-16T14:39:34-07:00

In these tough times, the subject of when to go to battle with your employer has come up several times. People are simply afraid that if they speak up, they will lose their job, lose a client or suffer a...

Paralegal Tech Institute at LegalTech Offers Free Job Class, Keynote and More

2009-04-14T11:29:45-07:00

If you have been merged, purged, fired, laid-off, delayed, sabbaticaled, held off, rescinded, pink slipped, downsized, rightsized or just plain broadsided and lost your job, you may want to hear about a generous offer from the folks at Law Technology...

"My Mommy is a Paralegal" - New Book for the Kids

2009-04-08T19:42:17-07:00

The question of what is a paralegal has been around since the career started. Explaining it to an adult is one thing, but try explaining it to a child who has never seen a court room, judge or even an...

Our Paralegal in London Faces Riots as Protestors Swarm Law Offices

2009-04-02T10:29:13-07:00

Loni Morganelli American Paralegal in London As most of our readers know, Loni Morganelli writes for The Estrin Report and contributes international posts. Working at a major firm in London, she gives us a global view of the legal world....

Enough Doom and Gloom- Show me the jobs!

2009-03-31T04:47:00-07:00

By Loni Morganelli American Paralegal in London After months of dismal news and gloomy job forecasts, I don't know about you, but I'm ready for some good news! So to help lift our spirits and in light of our "pay...

Paid Not to Work - Fighting the Recession Takes Interesting Turn

2009-03-26T13:59:17-07:00

By Loni Morganelli American Paralegal in London Last week, according to Bloomberg News, Latham & Watkins LLP, the fourth-largest U.S. law firm, made an announcement that they would be offering incoming lawyers $75,000 to take the year off. Latham, which...

New Investigative Techniques for Paralegals Include Social Networks

2009-03-24T04:52:37-07:00

Paralegals investigating witnesses, plaintiffs or defendants for trial often review medical records, financial documents, school records and employment history. Now, add to those avenues, social networking. According to an article in this morning's Legal Intelligencer, it is now standard operating...

He's Still Stupid, According to Obama

2009-03-17T00:01:08-07:00

We all get those annoying e-mails. You know, the ones that purport to know our name, recognize that we're "friends" with the sender when in fact, we haven't a clue who they are. Well, Ken Magill is proud to report...

From the National Law Journal: 'Domino effect' hits law-related business

2009-03-15T03:10:46-07:00

The National Law Journal carried this story and generously mentioned us in the piece. It comes out Monday. It is much more accurate and fair reporting than the throwaway, cheaply done publication, Litigation Support Today who last month openly and...

Help a Colleague Out - Pass Your Job Leads Forward

2009-03-10T04:18:38-07:00

Last week, we wrote about how we can help our colleagues who have recently been downsized, merged, purged, laid-off or, god forbid, "rightsized" into oblivion. As you may have heard, yesterday was another Black Monday. The National Law Journal reported...

It's a bloodbath out there. Here's a way we can help each other.

2009-03-04T17:51:37-08:00

By Loni Morganelli American Paralegal in London and Chere Estrin A couple of months ago, I was talking with a paralegal in Florida. I asked her how the recession was affecting her firm and inquired whether she felt there might...

Slum Dog Millionaires: Paralegal Program Director Wins $16k

2009-02-27T13:12:49-08:00

In the aftermath of today''s depressing news (over 2,000 attorneys and paralegals have lost their jobs in the past few weeks and today Latham & Watkins announced it is laying off over 250 paralegals and staff and 190 attorneys), we...

The Hidden Job Market - It's In the Vendors

2009-02-27T00:06:31-08:00

I had a terrific opportunity to run into two upbeat, interesting women who have the perfect jobs for paralegals seeking alternative careers. Now, hold your horses here because the first thing I'm going to tell you is that they are...