Top DOJ Paralegal Fired for Whistleblowing

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 prosecutors to target Democrats nationally. Few details have emerged about Rove's questioning on such...

15 Warning Signs Your Firm May Be Laying Off Staff

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.  Here is part of the DLA statement to the firm: "During the last year, we have experienced the worst economic period in generations. We have carefully gauged its impact on our...

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

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 Companies, Inc., explains how computers operate and store data in a way that is designed for attorneys...

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

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 background includes a degree in Agriculture in 1992 from the University of Illinois. ...

In Pursuit of Freedom: The Peter Kirchikov Story

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 heart and open your eyes. There are plenty of stories of paralegals who have had arduous experiences and the Peter Kirchikov story is no...

Associate Job Losses May Mean Paralegal Job Gains

  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 agree that most of the U.S. is running pretty lean and mean. Law360 reported yesterday that while associates are fighting to keep...

Smart Battles

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 loss or reputation.   A couple of years ago, I had a beef with an organization whose management took advantage of a situation.  They simply refused to pay for one of...

New Investigative Techniques for Paralegals Include Social Networks

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 procedure for paralegals to include checking a person's page on MySpace, FaceBook,...