Paralegal Career For Dummies

Scott and Lisa Hatch are founders of The Center for Legal Studies and developed their award-winning paralegal curriculum in 1980, offering it through 600 colleges nationwide. They continue to instruct legal career and standardized test preparation courses through Hatch Education and College Primers.

• Introduction 1About This Book 2Foolish Assumptions 2Icons Used in This Book 3Where to Go from Here 4Part 1: A Snapshot of the Exciting And Lucrative Paralegal Profession 5Chapter 1: Discovering the Paralegal Profession 7Almost a Lawyer: What a Paralegal Does 7Researching and analyzing the law 8Playing Sherlock: Interviewing and investigating 8Convening with clients 9Administrating the legal environment 9On the Job: Where Paralegals Work 11The six-figure paralegal: Working for the big firm 11Jack- or Jill-of-all-trades: Working for the small firm 12Spreading the love: The pro bono paralegal 12Working for the government 12Doing it your way: The paralegal as independent contractor 13What it Takes: The Skills, Knowledge, and Training You Need 13The paralegal personality 14Paralegal know-how 15Education and experience: Two ways to train 16Chapter 2: Membership Has its Privileges: Paralegal Associations and Their Certification Exams 19To Join or Not to Join 19Characterizing the types of associations 20Weighing in on whether or not to join an association 21Deciding Whether to Get Certified 22Choosing a certification exam 22Weighing the pros and cons of paralegal certification 24Chapter 3: The Hunt is On: Securing a Paralegal Position 25Finding the Perfect Job 25Traditional sources: Scanning the job boards and turning to placement services 26Networking: It’s who you know 27Creating the Documentation 28Killer cover letters 28Ravishing resumes 30Developing an online profile 33Setting Up Shop: Starting a Freelance Paralegal Business 34Part 2: Important Legal Concepts Every Paralegal Should Know 37Chapter 4: “All Rise”: The American Judicial System 39Everything Old Is New Again: The Importance of Legal Precedence 40Checks and Balances: Branches of U.S Government 42The rule makers: The legislative branch 44The enforcers: The executive branch 45The interpreters: The judicial branch 46Playing Fair: Levels of the U.S Judicial System 46The federal judicial system 47State judicial system 50Local judicial systems 53Judge and Jury: The U.S Jury System 54Order in the court: The bench trial 55Petition to your peers: The jury trial 55Chapter 5: The Big Three: Categories of Law 57Cutting Through the Red Tape: Administrative Law 58Building the bureaucracy: Government agencies 58Playing by the rules: Administrative law practices 59Getting your way: Informal and formal advocacy 61Eliminating Any Reasonable Doubt: The Nature of Criminal Law 63Building blocks: Elements of criminal liability 64High crimes and misdemeanors: Classes of crimes 65Maintaining Polite Society: Civil Law 68The victor’s spoils: Equitable relief and money damages 68Beyond dessert: Tort law 69Sealing and unsealing the deal: Contract law 76Chapter 6: Taking a Case to Trial: The Litigation Process 79Constructing the Criminal Case 79Charging the defendant 79Pushing through criminal pre-trial procedures 82Tackling criminal trial procedure 86Tying loose ends with criminal post-trial procedure 87Carrying Through a Civil Case 89Initiating the civil process 90Proceeding through pre-trial tasks 94Traveling through the trial 97Plodding along in the post-trial 98Chapter 7: How it’s Done: Important Rules of Civil Procedure and Evidence 101Distinguishing Between Procedural Law and Substantive Law 102Following the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 102Beginning an action: Rule 3 103Serving process: Rule 4 104Figuring out time limits: Rule 6 105Drafting pleadings: Rules 8, 11, and 12 105Uncovering the facts: Rules 26, 27, 30, 33, 36, and 37 107Requesting a summary judgment: Rule 56 110Sticking to State Procedural Rules 111Figuring Out Federal Rules of Evidence 111The main event: General provisions 112What matters: Relevancy 113Something special: Privilege 113All there?: Competency to testify 114Thinking logically: Reasonableness of opinion 115The telephone game: Hearsay 115The real deal: Authenticity and originality 116Chapter 8: Because I Said So: The Categories of Legal Authority 117Déjà Vu All Over Again: Review of Stare Decisis 118Who’s the Boss? The Premises of Primary and Secondary Authority 119First chair: Primary authority 120Second fiddle: Secondary authority 121Applying the Law: Mandatory and Persuasive Authority 121Counting on cases and statues: Mandatory authority 121Getting creative with sources: Persuasive authority 123Helpful But You Can’t Rely On it: Nonauthority 124Chapter 9: The Substantive Law Areas Most Commonly Practiced by Paralegals 125Facing the Family: Domestic Law and Estate Planning 125Settling the family affair: Domestic law 126Looking to the future: Estate planning 127Building the Boom and Blanketing the Bust: Business and Bankruptcy Law 130Keeping up with capitalism: Business law 131Providing debt relief: Bankruptcy law 132Compensating for Pain and Suffering: Personal Injury and Medical Malpractice 133Placing the blame: Personal injury law 134Questioning the bedside manner: Medical malpractice 135Getting it in Writing: Entertainment and Real Estate Law 137All that glitters: Entertainment law 137Preserving the American dream: Real estate law 138Protecting Assets: Tax and Intellectual Property Law 139Dealing with the IRS: Tax law 140Clarifying the rightful owner: Intellectual property law 141Part 3: Putting it Into Practice: The Paralegal in the Civil Litigation Process 143Chapter 10: The Paper Chase: Preparing Documents 145Communicating in Writing: Types of Legal Documents 145Getting started: Preliminary documents 146Taking it to the judge: Trial and post-trial documents 153Making the Case: Effective Document Drafting 153Commanding attention: Format of a demand letter 154Making your case: The complaint 156Striking back: The answer 160Presenting a formal analysis: The memorandum of law 162Exerting your will: Motions 168Playing detective: Disclosure and discovery 170Handling trial documents 173Chapter 11: Elementary My Dear Watson: Legal Investigation 175Searching for Clues: Gathering Evidence 176What are you trying to prove? Spotting issues 177What order will you follow? Creating checklists 177Who are you going to call? Sources of information 179Keeping Track: Identifying and Protecting Evidence 183Leaving your mark: Identifying evidence 184On guard: Protecting evidence 184Keeping Order: Organizing the Evidence 184Setting a time frame: Chronological organization 185Getting the story straight: Organization by versions 185Noting discrepancies: Organization by inconsistencies 185Chapter 12: Chewing the Fat: Legal Interviewing 187Gauging Whether the Case is Valid: Initial Client Interviews 187Setting the mood 188Directing the content 189Ending the initial interview 194Completing the Story: Witness Interviews 195Preparing Clients and Witnesses for Testimony 197Chapter 13: Burning the Midnight Oil: Legal Research 199Conducting Legal Research 200Searching for applicable law in four easy steps 200Reining in the research process 202Relying On Tools of the Trade 203Establishing a foundation with legal encyclopedias 204Analyzing topics with American Law Reports 205Digging through digests 206Rummaging through reporters 208Keeping current with case citators 208Opting for other resources 211Getting Technological: Computerized Legal Research 212Westlaw 212Lexis Advance 212Bloomberg Law 213The Internet 213Citing Cases Properly: Citation Format 214Citing statutes 215Citing cases 215Chapter 14: Where the Rubber Hits the Road: Trial Performance 217Creating the Ultimate Source of Information: The Trial Notebook 217Selecting the Jury: The Paralegal and Voir Dire 221Rebelling without a cause: Peremptory challenges 223Making a good excuse: Challenges for cause 224Dismissing the kit and caboodle: Challenges to the array 224Monitoring the pool 224Keeping Track of Witnesses 226Weighing Testimony: The Paralegal’s Take on the Jury’s Reaction 227Preparing Questions for the Attorney 228Settling Up: Preparing the Cost Bill 229Blood from a Turnip: Collecting a Difficult Judgment 229Chapter 15: The Official Word: Ethical Codes for Legal Professionals 231Doing What’s Right: The Importance of Ethics 232Defining ethics in the field of law 232Going too far: The unauthorized practice of law 233Following the chain of responsibility 234Abiding by the Rules of Professional Conduct 235Preserving the client-lawyer relationship 236Dealing with others in and out of the law office 238Maintaining the integrity of the profession 240Sorting through the Codes of Paralegal Associations 240Applying the standards of the National Association of Legal Assistants 241Knowing the National Federation of Paralegal Associations code 242Cracking the codes of other organizations 243Part 4: Identifying the Skills Paralegals Need to Soar 245Chapter 16: Presenting a Clear, Concise Legal Writing Style 247Corresponding Carefully 248Letters that impact 248Effortless emails 249Grammar: Grasping the Foundation of an Effective Writing Style 249Identifying the eight parts of speech 249Recognizing the elements of a sentence 254Sentence Structure: Positioning the Sentence’s Elements 257Eliminating wordiness 257Positioning modifiers 259Using active voice 259Employing parallel structure 260Punctuation and Mechanics: Mastering the Rules 260Rules for proper punctuation 260Mastering mechanics 265Organization: Structuring the Finished Product 271The outline 271The paragraph 272Specific documents 272Proofreading: Polishing the Finished Product 273Avoiding Plagiarism 274Chapter 17: Using Technology in Law 275Operating Computer Hardware and Networks in the Law Office 276Getting Savvy on Software Applications for the Law Office 277Sticking with standard office software 277Navigating special software for law firms 280Surfing the Net: Online Resources for Legal Professionals 281Researching the globe 281Meeting over the miles 283Carting Computers into the Courtroom 283Cutting the cords: Wireless technology 284Recognizing the downside of technology 284Chapter 18: Law Office Management 101 287Buying Time: Management Systems 287Marking the days: The calendar system 288Setting the alarm: The tickler system 290Getting it in writing: The to-do list 292Keeping Account: Billing Systems 294Recording time 294Creating invoices 295A Place for Everything: File Management 296Maintaining a filing system 296Organizing documents in a file folder 296Storing old files 297Part 5: The Part of Tens 299Chapter 19: The Ten Most Important Rules of Ethics 301Avoiding the Unauthorized Practice of Law 301Maintaining Client Confidentiality 302Disclosing Your Paralegal Status 302Reporting Ethics Violations of Other Legal Professionals 302Disclosing Information to Prevent Death or Serious Bodily Harm 302Sharing Information with Your Supervising Attorney 303Avoiding Conflicts of Interest 303Obeying All Applicable Attorneys’ Ethics Rules 303Giving Something to the Community: Pro Bono Services 304Making Your Voice Heard: Supporting Efforts to Improve the Legal System 304Chapter 20: Ten Things Every Paralegal Should Know 305How to Ask for Help 305Your Role 306How to Communicate Effectively 306The Value of Being Organized 306Your Limitations 307How to Research 307How to Use Technology 307The Rules of Professional Responsibility 308How to Draft Fundamental Legal Documents 308How to Weigh the Value of Paralegal Organizations 308Chapter 21: Ten Survival Tips to Thrive in the Legal Environment 309Continue Your Education 309Keep a Good Legal Dictionary Nearby 310Maintain the Integrity of Your Profession 310Be Polite and Patient with Court Clerks 310Take a Mind Reading Course 310Enjoy Problem Solving 311Refrain from Badmouthing Other Paralegals and Attorneys 311Never Act as though You’re Irreplaceable 311Don’t Count on a Normal Work Schedule 312Resist the Urge to Gossip about Clients 312Part 6: Appendixes 313Appendix A: Glossary of Important Legal Terms: A Mini Legal Dictionary 315Appendix B: What You’ll Find Online 337Index 345