“Small Litigation Shops Produce Big Results”

Do big-firm litigation paralegals wonder about switching to the small-firm world? "Litigation boutiques generally are characterized as having one dozen to two dozen lawyers, a payment system other than billable hours and careful selection of cases to enhance the firm's ability to provide individualized client service . The boutiques argue that they often provide better value than the...

“E-Discovery Zero Hour Approaches”

Is your firm or company prepared for these sweeping EDD rule changes? "Although the start date of the new electronic-discovery procedural rules is still three months away, lawyers who haven't sat down with clients to devise a plan may be losing a race against time. "The intent of the changes to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, effective on Dec. 1, is that they catch up with...

“iJacking” Risk

Not solely affecting paralegals, everyone should read this info about identity theft: "A national study has uncovered the top cities most at risk for 'ijacking.' "iJacking: (i*jak*ng) noun: An emotionally devastating crime that drains your accounts, hurts your reputation and leaves you financially paralyzed when thieves assume your identity or use your Social Security number to...

Legal Assistant Who’s Lost 10 Jobs!

Not much we can add to this item -- the advice given sounds right on! "Dear Ella, "I'm 32 years old and have been fired from 10 jobs. Early in my career, most of my terminations had to do with attendance issues. For the past 10 years, personality conflicts have been the issue. The conflicts are with a small number of people, but it's apparent that it is with people that influence the...

“Tech firm opens office in Milwaukee”

Interested in working for a tech-lit vendor? "Elijah Technologies Ltd., a Chicago-based company specializing in computer forensic investigations and electronic discovery processing, today announced it has opened a new Milwaukee office at 1215 N. Water St. "The company's Milwaukee office, which is beginning with two employees, is overseen by Eric Struve. The company has 10 employees in...

“Report on Paralegal Education Programs in the US”

Very thorough survey of U.S. paralegal programs researched & prepared by LawCrossing: "In an effort to provide future paralegals with the information they need to choose a paralegal education program and to aid higher education administrators in evaluating programs, LawCrossing has compiled statistics on 36 paralegal education programs. "The majority of paralegal students are...

Legal Assistant Profiles + Attorney

Now this is an interesting twist! Axley Brynelson (in Madison, Wisconsin), includes profiles of its legal assistants & indicates the attorneys they work with! Mary Haack, litigation; Ellen Teed, business litigation; Shirley Jensen, estate planning & more; Cindy Erstad, telecommunications & more.

“Attrition in Associates Leads to Attrition in Law Firm Marketing”

Comments about the attrition of associates probably of interest to paralegals too: "Interesting post from Larry Bodine about how the associate attrition problems that I blogged about last week are taking a toll on lawyer marketing efforts. Apparently, because few lawyers see themselves as making partner or don't care about partnership as a goal, they're not particularly interested in...