Some
of us are very happy with our jobs, and plan to remain
working where we are forever. Some of us are very unhappy,
and are looking for new positions. Some of us have become “stagnant” in
our positions, and probably haven’t thought, one
way or another, about the possibility of changing jobs.
The
need to change jobs comes if we are (“ugh”)
laid off or terminated. “Need” may be generated
by firm mergers, firm layoffs, firm closures, or a number
of bad performance reviews. A desire to change jobs arises
when we are dissatisfied with our current positions or
think there are “greener pastures.”
Desire is predicated upon a dislike of one or more attorneys
with whom we work, a dislike our coworkers, a dislike firm
policies, or a dislike our firms’ benefits. “Opportunity”
could knock on our doors at any time. No matter how happy
we are in our current positions, an opportunity to work
in a firm that provides the promise of more responsibility,
a more pleasant working environment, greater benefits,
and more money could arise at any time.
Are
we prepared for Need, Desire, Opportunity? Probably not –
especially if we are extremely satisfied with our current
positions, or are happy to let things keep moving along,
just as they always have done. However, it is imperative
that we always be prepared for any of these circumstances.
We
need to acknowledge the fact that the “law firm
business”
has evolved into a tough one. Reality: Over the last few
years, law firms (small, medium-sized, and large) have
had to dissolve, some have merged, and some have had huge
lay offs. Law firms want the “best of the best” when
it comes to their attorneys and staff. Years ago, one bad
performance review may have warranted a “talking
to,” but, today, one bad review could mean someone
being out the door – even if the review may have
been misleading or totally false. Since law firms are looking
for the best of the best, we need to keep our resumes current;
we should be able to provide a list of cases we have worked
on for the last one or two years, so as to avoid potential
conflicts of interest at a new firm; and, we need to make
a concentrated effort to continually learn. Learning includes
enhancing our knowledge of office skills; people skills;
court procedures; court rules; new laws, statutes, and
ordinances; law firm trends; legal trends; and technology.
Resumes. We
never know when Need, Desire, or Opportunity may arise.
Therefore, we should always keep our resumes current.
Resumes should, whenever possible, be limited to one
page. A basic resume includes name; address; telephone
contact info; e-mail address; job history; education;
association memberships; certifications; special skills;
and, objectives (what we hope to accomplish based on
what skills we can bring to a new firm). Keep resume
fonts formal, but distinctive. Capsulize association
responsibilities, awards, etc., education seminars attended;
and special skills. Use good quality paper on which to
print resumes, and always include a short cover letter
(which may include some information we would like the
interviewer to know, but cannot fit in our resume).
Potential
Conflicts. Most firms currently only screen
lawyers and paralegals for potential conflicts of interest.
However, a slow trend is evolving in which staff is
also being screened, especially secretaries/lawyers’ assistants.
While a firm we are leaving may help us gather this
critical information, it would serve us well if we
kept our own updated listed of client/case-name information.
However, there is a strong warning to this: we must
always remember that we cannot reveal anything confidential.
Therefore, we will probably need to have the Conflicts
Department or Professional Standards Committee of our
soon-to-be former firm look over the list before we
submit it to our potential new employer. This is an
area that cannot be fully covered here, since it involves
a great number of issues, and can only be dealt with
by people who deal with conflict and potential conflict
issues on a daily basis. The main thing to know is
that we may be asked for such a list.
Learning. While
we may find it difficult to put together a suitable,
professional resume, “Learning”
is one of the easiest things for us to accomplish and continue.
We need to take the time to read all legal-related publications
and do periodic Internet searches for current legal trends
and news. We should all be taking the time to search for
(and read) proposed changes in laws, statutes, and ordinances;
United States and individual state supreme and appellate
court decisions; changes in administrative agency laws
and procedures; court rules and procedures; law office
trends and news; and technology trends, available software,
etc. Finally, we need to participate in NALS OnLine Study
Groups (almost every Tuesday) and Education Committee online
education chats (periodic Wednesdays) – for dates
and topics about online and education chats, go to nals.org.
Accept
Responsibility: This article would not be
complete if we didn’t cover our duty to accept
responsibility. The more responsibility we accept,
and accomplish correctly, the more valuable we will
become to any firm. We can no longer get away with
saying, “That’s not my job.” In this
day and age, if we only do the minimum of what is expected
of us, we will not get ahead – at our current
firm or any other. Because of the pressure put on all
attorneys to have more and more billable hours, the
responsibilities of drafting and researching are falling
more heavily on paralegals/legal assistants and secretaries/lawyers’
assistants. If we want to increase our worth to any firm
(and, hopefully, our income), we must adjust where need
be and accept additional responsibilities. Accepting responsibility
is a “learning experience.” Most importantly,
it is our responsibility to do whatever we can to free
up a lawyer’s time to bill for that which he or she
can bill for, rather than having to work even harder and
put in more hours to come up with minimum billable hours.
With
all the foregoing in mind, we should be ready to make
ourselves as invaluable as possible, not only at our
current firms, but any firm at which we may want to go
out of Need, Desire, or Opportunity.
