The Estrin Report

Fort Worth paralegal named Legal Professional of the Year

Hearty congratulations to Leslie Stokes for receiving this award reported by Pegasus News:

"Leslie G. Stokes, Certified PP, PLS, TSC-CL, at the Law Offices of Steven C. Laird, P.C., in Fort Worth, has been named Legal Professional of the Year for 2007-2008 by the Texas Association of Legal Professionals.

"Ms. Stokes, a native of Fort Worth, was presented with the award at the Texas ALP's recent annual meeting in Arlington. She has worked as a paralegal at the Laird firm for the past six years.

"Ms. Stokes works under the supervision of two attorneys on complex medical malpractice and personal injury cases. She is involved in every aspect of trial preparation, including handling upkeep of case files, meeting with clients, monitoring deadlines, coordinating and scheduling depositions, hearings, mediations, and expert interviews. In addition, she researches legal issues, drafts pleadings and discovery and does background research on witnesses.

"'Leslie is an invaluable member of our legal team,' says firm founder Steven C. Laird. 'Without her and our other paralegals, we lawyers wouldn't be prepared to set foot in a courtroom. She is very deserving of this honor.'"

Such welcome praise from a lawyer!

Paralegals 'Adopt' Military Paralegals

This article from the Richmond (KY) Register -- "Showing you care may be easier than you think" -- shows how you can help support US troops:

"Receiving a package from someone special is always exciting, but for troops serving overseas, it’s a little piece of home.

"Many people may think it’s a good idea to send some goodies to our men and women who are at war, but don’t know where to begin. One Richmond woman said it’s easier than you might think.

"Lee Williams is a Richmond citizen and a member of the Greater Lexington Paralegal Association, an organization which provides resources to paralegals in Lexington, Richmond, Winchester and other surrounding areas. Since 2005, Williams and other GLPA members have adopted other paralegals who are in the military. They send them care packages and keep in contact with them until they come home.

"'It is a very simple thing to do,' Williams said. 'We have a military-issued list of what we can send to them and everybody has a copy of it. We donate to the box and when it’s full, we send it on. We always get responses that it makes them feel like Christmas and how thankful that they are that they have not been forgotten.'"

You can see the list of approved items at the article's end.

Conspicuous Hole in [Paralegal] Ethics Training

This commentary in Law.com by an experienced paralegal surprised me. What's your reaction?

"For all the talk of the need to prevent ethics transgressions in the legal profession, a glaring education gap exists for one group: paralegals.

"Usually, it does not rise to the level of a topic to be covered -- until there is a problem. It generally crops up after an unintentional violation of the attorney-client relationship by support staff members who have received no ethics training.

"As a paralegal for more than seven years, I often get questions from colleagues asking what to do in certain situations. Those of us who have been educated in an American Bar Association-accredited program have some knowledge of ethical issues. However, some support staff are not even aware of the ethical issues to avoid, yet they are on their firms' front lines every day, in danger of unintentionally violating ethics rules.

"In a poll taken on Jan. 3 by NJParalegal, we asked our members the following: Have you ever received training or instruction by your attorney-employer on how to handle ethical issues, specifically, maintaining attorney-client relationships and the confidentiality of your clients?

"The answer: Of the 42 who responded, 80 percent said no."

Author Cindy Lopez is a paralegal in the office of Charles Byrnes in Toms River, N.J., and is founder of NJParalegal, a career resource. She's also a speaker for Estrin LegalEd Paralegal SuperConferences.

"Florida Supreme Court hears paralegal rule argument"

Paralegals working in Florida will want to keep an eye on the proceedings outlined in the Jacksonville Daily Record:

"The Unlicensed Practice of Law (UPL) program was established by the Supreme Court of Florida to protect the public against harm caused by unlicensed individuals practicing law.

"This program is a proposal only. It has been approved by the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar. The Supreme Court of Florida must now rule on the proposal.

"Monday, the Supreme Court of Florida held oral argument on the proposed Florida Registered Paralegal rule [PDF]. The Court gave no indication as to when it will rule or how it will rule. Updates will be posted on the Bar’s Web site."

"A Paralegal's View of The ABA Techshow"

Excellent review of the ABA Legal Techshow posted on the Indiana Paralegal Association blog:

"As I write this article, I am on the train heading back from Chicago after four (4) days of legal tech submersion at the annual the America Bar Association Legal Techshow. The ABA Techshow is an annual gathering of the most prominent legal techies from across the country and some say in the entire world. It includes; lawyers, paralegals, IT professionals, litigation support specialists, law librarians, office managers, etc . I was very impressed with the turn-out of Indiana Paralegals during the convention, but somewhat surprised at the lack of CLE courses directed towards paralegals. However; overall, I believe the conference was a success, and I am already looking forward to next year’s conference. Below are some of the highlights of the conference....."

Author Courtney David Mills is the IPA Technology Director & Litigation Paralegal at Hall Render Killian Heath & Lyman, P.C.

NFPA Pro Bono Conference

Tip of that hat to LawCrossing for pointing to this info:

"While reviewing news releases and other noteworthy items pertaining to the paralegal world this week, I came across a notice about an upcoming Pro Bono Conference sponsored by the National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA). The conference, which will be held in Denver at Holland & Hart on March 24 and 25, 2007, will teach legal assistants and paralegals how to find local and national pro bono opportunities.

"Specifically, the conference will guide paralegals through the process of building and expanding pro bono programs, specifically focusing on recruiting volunteers, keeping them interested and active, documenting volunteer projects, and recognizing volunteers through a reward system.

[snip]

"Sponsored by the National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA), the conference will be held in Denver at Holland & Hart on March 24- 25, 2007. Legal assistants & paralegals can learn how to find both local & national pro bono opportunities.

"It's not too late to sign up! Visit the National Federation of Paralegal Associations' website for more information."

NOTE: Registration is required, but there is no cost for the conference; attendees are responsible only for travel & hotel expenses. The conference is open to NFPA Members ONLY.

"Chief Legal Officers Poised to Increase Use of Outside Counsel"

Good news that should mean more jobs for paralegals:

"More than 25 percent of in- house law department leaders indicated that they will increase their use of outside counsel in the coming year, according to the Association of Corporate Counsel's 2006 Chief Legal Officer Survey [PDF].

"This is a significant increase from 2005 when only 16 percent of respondents anticipated an increase in the use of outside counsel and it is the highest response since the 2001 survey."

"Questions Linger Over Paralegal Certification Bid"

So, certification for Connecticut paralegals is "two to five years" away?

"The road to paralegal certification will be a long one, but Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz pledged her support of the endeavor during a luncheon speech to the Central Connecticut Paralegal Association (CCPA) earlier this month at The Hartford Club.

"The CCPA has not yet taken an official stance on certification and continues to discuss with members their concerns over a measure that would make Connecticut one of only a few states that officially recognizes certified and licensed paralegals.

"'It will be a long process,' agreed CCPA President Janet Jacobson, estimating a time period of two to five years."

Illinois Paralegal Association Asks Firms Not to Outsource

Don't know, at this point, if it's possible to turn the rushing tide toward outsourcing of legal work. But I applaud the IPA's attempt:

"Ruby Prasad’s legal research and briefs regularly find their way into courts across the United States despite the fact her workstation is located 8,000 miles away in India.

"Prasad is among the 200 lawyers working for Chicago-based Mindcrest Inc., which has an outsourcing facility in Mumbai.

"Mindcrest and other legal outsourcing firms are experiencing explosive growth. Mindcrest is 10 times the size it was two years ago.

[snip]

"Forrester Research projects legal outsourcing will be a $4 billion industry by 2015, creating 79,000 jobs in India alone.

[snip]

"But the trend has caused some concern for the Illinois Paralegal Association.

"The 1,500-member organization’s board of directors distributed a letter [PDF] to 300 Chicago area companies asking them to use paralegals instead. The letter stated that work done by paralegals is quality controlled and cost efficient. It added that experienced paralegals perform high-level substantive work under direct supervision of an attorney at lower billing rates than attorneys."

Editorial: 'Lawyers will regulate paralegals'

Another strong opinion about regulating Canadian paralegals:

"Ontario has passed a law that will regulate paralegals. This is good news. Until now, what has it taken to be a paralegal? Call yourself one. That's it. No training required. No liability insurance. No minimum standards. No discipline for bad ones.

"I've seen some good paralegals. I've seen some bloody awful ones too. Of course, the skeptics will say the same about lawyers. At least lawyers have certain minimum training, have passed competency exams, pay liability insurance in case they screw up, and they can get booted out of the profession if they are unethical. Until now, there was virtually nothing you could do about a bad paralegal.

[snip]

"With the Law Society in charge [PDF link], it will have to strike a balance that protects the public and preserves the roles of both paralegals and lawyers. I'm hoping that it will find the right balance.

"I don't consider paralegals to be competition for me in my practice. We are simply not going after the same work. On the other hand, there are paralegals doing some things that are way out of their league.

"In my view, paralegals should never be doing separation agreements or family law. They should not be doing wills and estate planning. They should not be doing real estate transactions. These are areas of law where the amateurs think that it is just filling in the blanks on a 'standard' form. It isn't."

By Ian Johncox, a partner with the Mason Bennett Johncox law firm in Whitby, Ontario.