Chapter 3

The Hunt Is On: Securing a Paralegal Position

IN THIS CHAPTER

Using traditional and not-so-traditional tools to find your dream job

Whipping up resumes and cover letters that show off your potential

Venturing out on your own with a freelance paralegal career

Nothing you can do will give you a better paralegal education than hands-on experience. And the best way to get hands-on experience is to get involved in an internship or job in the legal practice area you like best.

This chapter gives you the tools you need to find a paralegal job or internship, including sources for job leads and guidelines for creating cover letters and resumes. If you have an entrepreneurial spirit, you can take advantage of our tips on how to start your own business, as well as our sample freelance rate sheet.

Finding the Perfect Job

Job hunting can be pretty challenging, but persistence and careful planning will give you the edge you need to succeed in the job search. Many different entities employ paralegals in a variety of areas, so sometimes you have to think creatively to find the best position for you. Law firms, government agencies, banks, insurance companies, and corporate legal divisions comprise the primary employers of paralegals. But other businesses, like real estate agencies, professional sports teams, and public utility companies, also need employees who know about law.

Flexibility and persistence go a long way in shaping your future and solidifying your success. So, if you don’t find your dream job in a traditional law office, dream a little differently.

Paralegal jobs are plentiful, but you have to know where to look for them. To help you in your search, this section provides you with some of the common and uncommon resources for finding a paralegal position. Our information isn’t exhaustive, however — you may come up with a career source we haven’t even heard of!

Traditional sources: Scanning the job boards and turning to placement services

Traditional job hunt resources include job boards, placement services, and bar association referral services.

The Internet provides one of the most prolific job lead sources you can find: online job boards. Enter pertinent information, and the search engine comes back with a list of prospects and contact information. Often, you can get the ball rolling by submitting your cover letter and resume by email to the employers who have posted job listings.

A couple of the most popular job search sites are Monster (www.monster.com) and Indeed.com (www.indeed.com). Law-specific board appear on www.findlaw.com and the American Bar Association website (https://jobs.americanbar.org). Many more sites are out there — just search “paralegal jobs” in your favorite search engine.

These sites give you the advantage of narrowing your search by field and location and may give you job leads in areas you haven’t even considered. Usually, the bigger the search engine the better because you’ll have more positions to choose from. And, if you’re footloose and fancy free, you can check out possibilities in different cities and states.

Check out the online content for this book to find links to and information about the most popular online employment search engines.

When you’re searching the job boards, be creative; sometimes employers don’t know they’re looking for a paralegal, but you can help them see that that’s just what they need. So, in addition to looking for a position in the “Paralegal” category, check out listings in the “Legal Assistant,” “Law Office,” “Administrative Assistant,” and even “Legal Secretary” categories as well. Often working as a legal secretary for one or two attorneys becomes a paralegal position as your employers grow to trust you with increased responsibilities.

A placement service is another good traditional source for paralegal positions. Legal staffing agencies — like Gibson Arnold & Associates (www.gibsonarnold.com) and Colman Nourian (www.cnlegalsearch.com.com) — specialize in the legal field and usually don’t charge fees to the job hunter. Some staffing agencies offer temporary positions, which provide great opportunities for you to develop experience in several different areas of law and legal environments without committing to a permanent position. Placement offices in your local colleges and universities (especially those that offer paralegal programs) may advertise paralegal positions particularly for first-time job seekers. And, most state and local bar associations provide job referral services for paralegals and may include job listings in their newsletters.

When you’re looking for a job, be sure to work every angle — don’t try just one or two methods.

Networking: It’s who you know

The old saying that it’s not what you know but who you know holds for the legal profession. Participating in state and local paralegal association meetings and enrolling in continuing legal education and paralegal courses are excellent ways to meet working paralegals and attorneys who may know of job openings in their offices. Most paralegal positions are filled by word of mouth before an employer even thinks of advertising, so associating with people who may be aware of available jobs is a good idea. And, you’ll get the added benefit of meeting people with common interests and learning more about your profession.

Just in case you do hear of an opening, whenever you’re attending a meeting or getting together with legal professionals, be sure to bring at least 50 copies of your resume and your freelance rate sheet. (See “Ravishing resumes” and “Setting Up Shop: Starting a Freelance Paralegal Business,” later in this chapter, for more on how to prepare these tools.)

Compiling lists of local firms and agencies can reveal potential job sources for a burgeoning paralegal career. Start by creating a list of websites, phone numbers, email addresses, physical addresses, and names of personnel managers for local law firms, banks, insurance claims offices, real estate firms, and state and federal agencies. Then use this list to make at least five to ten calls a day to inquire about openings and arrange for interviews. After you contact a firm, mark the date of contact on the list and record its result.

The key to this technique is patience and diligence. The time and effort you put in will eventually pay off.

Creating the Documentation

After you have your job leads, you’ll need to introduce yourself. The customary way of letting people know just how great you are is through a well-written cover letter and resume. Supplement this introduction by creating an engaging LinkedIn profile. And, to prove to potential employers that you have what it takes to prepare legal documents, include a sample of a memoranda of law you’ve written (we show you how to draft one in Chapter 10).

Entire books are devoted to the subject of cover letters and resumes, so for even more information, check out the latest editions of Resumes For Dummies and Cover Letters For Dummies, both by Joyce Lain Kennedy, and The Resume Kit by Richard H. Beatty (all published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.).

Killer cover letters

Often, the first contact you have with a potential employer is through the cover letter you send along with your resume. Paralegals usually work in fairly conservative settings and hold positions of great responsibility. So, your cover letter should reflect a conservative and dignified tone and obviously be mistake-free. Because most paralegal positions involve a lot of writing, you can bet that potential employers are checking out your writing style.

Figure 3-1 gives you an example of a professional cover letter. You can find a copy of this cover letter online.

© John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

FIGURE 3-1: A sample cover letter.

You can get helpful tips for improving your writing style in Chapter 16. Here are some other things you can do to make sure your cover letter catches an employer’s attention:

• Adopt a friendly but professional tone.
• Let the employer know how you heard about the position. If you were referred by a mutual acquaintance, name-drop.
• Demonstrate that you know what the responsibilities of the position will be. Write just enough about yourself to give the employer a good idea of who you are in a quick sweep of the letter.
• Describe in detail the specific qualities you have that make you the ideal person to meet those responsibilities. Present yourself confidently to the employer. Personalize the letter to demonstrate that you’ve done a little research about the potential employer and the position it has available.
• Thank the employer for taking the time to consider your application.
• Have a friend proofread your letter before you send it. The letter should look neat, balanced, well-organized, and error-free. Employers may toss sloppy looking letters and the resumes that come with them without ever reading them.

Ravishing resumes

You introduce yourself with a cover letter, but what really interests the employer is your resume.

Supply the most current and specific resume possible. A potential employer for a paralegal position doesn’t want to see the resume you used to try to get a position as a circus ringleader (although at times the two positions do resemble each other). Your resume should include your

• Career objective: State your career objective briefly and specifically. Avoid phrases like “To find a career where I can use my talents and grow mentally and emotionally,” which focus on you and say nothing about the job at hand. Ideally, you should change the objective to match each job you apply for. But if that’s too time-consuming, opt for one as specific as possible, something like “To secure a position in a law office where I can offer my research and communication skills.”

• Work experience: List your work experience in reverse chronological order, starting with the most recent position you’ve held. If you’re young and have held only a few positions, list all your work experiences. If you’re considering a career change after a few decades in the workforce, focus your list to your most recent and most relevant experience. Potential employers probably don’t care that you moonlighted during the summer of your senior year digging for earthworms for the local bait shop.

  Describe your work experience and skills with illustrative action verbs. If you have limited work experience, use your resume to highlight your related skills and education.

  Consider getting involved in a paralegal internship to see how a law practice operates and to show prospective employers that you have experienced the law firsthand.

• Special skills: Highlight skills you’ve acquired that pertain to a paralegal career. You may have developed an affinity for research, client relations, organization, or administration while working in unrelated fields. Perhaps you’re especially gifted with understanding computers and related technology. These skills are especially suited to a paralegal position, so show them off in your resume, like the example in Figure 3-2 of a resume that highlights skills.
• Education: List your education in reverse chronological order, starting with the degree or education you received most recently. If you haven’t had a lot of related education, your resume should highlight your relevant experience. You may need to enroll in some paralegal courses to round out your resume.
• Honors and distinctions: List distinctions you’ve received for achievements related to the work environment, such as your membership in the Phi Beta Kappa honor society or your nomination for corporate employee of the year. Don’t include the third place ribbon you won in the fifth-grade science fair for your exploding volcano or the honorable mention you received in the national refrigerated-dough bakeoff recipe contest.
• References: Many job seekers don’t list references on their resumes because the list increases the number of pages of your resume. But potential employers want to check references, so if you don’t include references at the end of your resume, make a list (on a separate sheet of paper) of several past employers and personal references who can vouch for you, and take that list with you to the interview. Employers often check your references right after your interview, and what they learn can either make or break your chances for getting hired. Your reference list should include addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses.

© John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

FIGURE 3-2: Sample resume that highlights skills over law office experience.

Although employers generally prefer one-page resumes, don’t be afraid to use two pages if you need that much space to highlight your skills. (A law school dean we once hired needed 26 pages to convey the most remarkable highlights of his law career!)

We provide you with a copy of the resume in Figure 3-2 and another sample resume online. The other resume emphasizes employment for someone who has more law-related experience than education.

Developing an online profile

After you assemble your work history and skills, you can broadcast your qualifications online. Creating a LinkedIn profile potentially increases your network and introduces you to prospective employers. Business cards are often lost, but an online presence is perpetually available. Here are tips for setting up an effective profile:

• Personalize your profile with pictures. Upload a clear headshot photo for the front picture and a background picture that conveys your personality or career goals, for instance, a shelf of law books.
• Use key words in your headline. State your position clearly. The headline isn’t the place to show off your creativity. If you present yourself as a “Legal Document Engineer,” you won’t appear in searches for paralegals.
• Create a personalized Profile URL. LinkedIn allows you to change your URL from a list of arbitrary numbers to a unique designation. Include your name and title. If you have a common first and last name, distinguish yourself with a middle name or more specific title, for example, www.linkedin.com/in/chris-middleton-smith-paralegal. You can include this URL on your business cards and email signatures.
• Write a thoughtful summary. Within the introduction, you have the opportunity to define yourself and your skills. Show off your writing skills and produce three or four paragraphs to describe your overall personality and qualifications. Your summary is searchable, so include key search terms in your carefully crafted sentences.
• Expand your resume. The Experience and Education sections allow you to provide detail about your prior positions that may not fit in a standard one-page resume. Highlight skills, personal attributes, and specific coursework that apply to a legal career.
• Add media. LinkedIn gives you the ability to add photos, videos, presentations, and websites to your introduction, experience, and education details. Go ahead and upload that presentation video of you during your local paralegal association meeting or photos of you shaking hands with the governor.
• List all applicable skills. The Skills & Endorsements section allows you to list everything you’re good at. Start with as many as apply. Endorse the skills of other members you know, and they’ll likely endorse yours.
• Seek recommenders. Ask former co-workers and bosses (if appropriate) to write a quick recommendation on your profile. Reciprocate by recommending them.
• Network. Search for groups that interest you. You can join general paralegal networks and groups that address more specific fields. Follow paralegal-related organization, such as NALA, NFPA, and the ABA. Read posts to stay in touch with current issues and add your own posts in your areas of expertise.

Regularly update your profile and add posts to forums to keep your profile front and center. Your initial goal may be to secure employment, but LinkedIn supplies a wealth of information and contacts after you’re employed.

Setting Up Shop: Starting a Freelance Paralegal Business

You may be one of the many paralegals who enjoy the freedom of self-employment. Instead of being an employee of one legal entity, most freelance paralegals contract their services to several different law firms or attorneys. This situation benefits both the attorney and the paralegal: National studies indicate that freelance paralegals earn significantly more than other paralegal professionals, and attorneys that contract with a paralegal get the convenience of quality paralegal services without having to commit to or pay benefits to a new employee. Some states license independent contractors to prepare documents for clients. If you meet the state requirements, you can set up shop to do limited legal work without the supervision of an attorney. Working as an independent contractor gives the freedom to set your own hours and work from your own home or office. You can actually prepare briefs in your briefs!

Going freelance sounds great, but there are a few things you have to consider before going into business for yourself. You must be willing to accept the financial responsibility of self-employment. As with any new business, you need to have enough money to set up your business and keep it running until you’ve built up a large client base and the money is steadily flowing in. You’re responsible for your own office supplies and equipment, health insurance, and Social Security taxes. To keep Uncle Sam happy, you need to engage in careful bookkeeping (or hire someone else to do it) and you need to pay quarterly estimated federal and state (if applicable) income taxes. You’re also responsible for maintaining liability insurance, which is relatively inexpensive but very important for practicing freelance paralegals.

If you’ve already worked in law firms or the court system, you probably have contacts for potential clients, and you can also compile a client base by taking advantage of the resources we discuss earlier in “Finding the Perfect Job.” Set up a LinkedIn profile to network (see “Developing an online profile”). After you create a personal profile, you can add a page for your paralegal business where you can present photos, lists of services, and samples of your work.

Before you approach a prospective client, create a freelance rate sheet that explains the types of services you provide and the hourly cost for each service. Your new businesses should start by charging a comparatively low hourly rate, such as $35 to $45 per hour, depending on what part of the country you live in. As your business grows and you become more experienced, you may charge as much as $75 or more per hour, depending on factors like what your specialty is, the size of your community, and what type of work you perform. You can find a sample freelance rate sheet online.

Print up some business cards and stationery to give yourself a professional image. Your business cards and letterhead must clearly state that you’re a paralegal and not an attorney.

A great resource if you’re considering life as a freelancer is Freelancing For Dummies by Susan M. Drake (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.).