Probably the Weirdest Career Idea I'll Ever Post Here

The Washington Post has a fascinating article about who has made a fortune ... but not as a paralegal. If you're looking for some interesting reading over the weekend, you might want to check it out.

Also, I just learned that the Library of Congress employs paralegals. So there's that. 😊

how-a-government-paralegal-mastered-portrait-photography-to-make-millions/2017/10/27/7156c306-b8db-11e7-9e58-e6288544af98_story.html

Changes at Harvard Law School

Okay, this article is really about how HLS has changed its deferral program. In the past, a certain number of people who had been admitted by Harvard Law could, with HLS's permission, defer their enrollment for a year to pursue other opportunities. HLS is now making the deferral option more widely available, and has expanded it to a 2-year deferment.

Yes, if I put it like that, it sounds kind of dry and boring.

BUT--in the middle of this article is a paragraph about a student-to-be who is using her deferment, and her martial arts skills, to be a Hollywood stunt double, all while supporting herself as a paralegal.

You know I cannot resist an article that contains the words Harvard, paralegal, martial arts, and stunt double, all in the same paragraph.

Talk about living the dream!

Read all about it here.

Paralegal/Limited License Practitioners: They're Not Just a Thing, They're a Good Thing

From today's ABA Journal:

Limited license legal technicians in the state of Washington are succeeding at helping clients who can’t afford a lawyer while staying within their limits as practitioners, a new study has found.

Conducted by the American Bar Foundation and the National Center for State Courts with support from the Public Welfare Foundation, the study (PDF) evaluates Washington’s LLLT program. The program permits nonlawyers who earn an LLLT credential to help clients with lower-level legal tasks without the supervision of a lawyer, as the ABA Journal reported in January of 2015.

Currently, Washington is the only state offering this kind of license, although Utah is working on a similar program for professionals called Paralegal Practitioners. Washington’s first LLLT class took the licensing exam two years ago. All of those LLLTs are licensed in family law; the state of Washington plans to expand training to other practice areas. LLLTs help fill out forms and explain legal procedures to clients. They may not represent their clients in court or in negotiations with opposing parties.

Read the full article here.

Paralegal Blows the Whistle on Shenanigans in NC Prosecutor's Office--Stay Tuned!

Nobody has a better seat to things that can go wrong than a paralegal. This one blew the whistle on her boss--and got fired. What will the court do? We'll be following this case:

Legal assistant claims she was fired for reporting alleged scheme by DAs to hire each other's wives

A legal assistant in North Carolina has filed a whistleblower suit claiming she was fired for telling state investigators about an alleged scheme by two district attorneys to hire each other’s wives.
Debra Halbrook claims District Attorney Wallace Bradsher of Person and Caswell counties fired her last month after he concluded she must have been the informant who contacted the State Bureau of Investigation, report WRAL and the Greensboro News & Record.

The suit (PDF) alleges Bradsher and Rockingham County District Attorney Craig Blitzer conspired to hire each other’s wives. The women would be allowed to work only a few days each year, while earning a combined total of nearly $100,000, the suit alleged.

For more, click here

Why You Never Say, "Just a Paralegal"

Note the following excerpt from the excellent article, Best of the Business: Paralegals Are Unsung Heroes No More.

Paralegals do not work for us; they work with us and are an integral part of the team. They are patient. They are kind. They do not boast. They are not easily angered. They rarely keep record of wrongs. They always protect, always trust (but verify), always hope and always persevere. Without our professional legal staff, we simply could not provide, with any level of consistency, quality legal services that help make the lives of our clients better – Best of the Business, Paralegals Are Unsung Heroes No More

As always, if you have time, read the whole article. 

Bubba the Love Sponge--the Last Word?

Several of us have been following Bubba the Love Sponge's defamation case, which was less interesting for whatever may have gone on in trial (I have no earthly idea) than for what was going on behind the scenes. If you've forgotten, the defense attorneys in the defamation case got their paralegal to flirt with opposing counsel (Bubba's attorney) and persuade him to buy her several drinks. When he went out to move her car for her, she alerted a waiting police officer, who arrested Bubba's attorney for OWI. It's hard to believe, but this stellar plan backfired. The attorneys and paralegal have all lost their jobs, and now it appears that the attorneys will also be losing their licenses.

From Friday's ABA Journal:

Florida lawyer is permanently disbarred for DUI setup

Posted Jan 29, 2016 09:28 am CST

By Debra Cassens Weiss

---

inShare4

Florida lawyer Stephen Diaco has been permanently disbarred for his role in setting up an opposing lawyer for a drunken driving arrest during a 2013 trial.
The Florida Supreme Court permanently disbarred (PDF) Diaco on Thursday after he dropped appeals in the ethics case, report the Tampa Tribune and the Tampa Bay Times.
The Florida Bar had accused Diaco and two other lawyers of sending a paralegal to a Tampa steakhouse where the opposing lawyer was having drinks. The flirtatious paralegal seated herself next to the opposing lawyer and later tricked him into moving her car, resulting in his arrest by a waiting police officer, according to the ethics complaint.
The court previously suspended Diaco and two other lawyers accused in the setup in sua sponte orders on Jan. 15. An ethics referee recommended permanent disbarment for the trio in August.

Jeopardy Champ

Current Jeopardy! champ Matt Jackson is a paralegal working in Washington, D.C. Woot!

It Doesn't Get Any Better than This

I believe I've written about this case before. This is the one where the paralegal from one firm met opposing counsel in a bar and seduced him into drinking with her until he was drunk. She then played on his chivalry (yep, that's what we'll call it) to persuade him to get her car for her because she was too drunk. As soon as he headed for the parking lot, she and her supervising attorneys notified the police that he would be driving drunk.

Things didn't turn out as the paralegal and her firm had anticipated. Opposing counsel was not charged with drunken driving, but the paralegal's supervisors are facing some heavy discipline from the Florida state disciplinary commission.

To pick up on today's development--it appears that the disciplinary commission is relying on a confession by the paralegal which may have been illegally videotaped by her estranged husband. (Hardly a surprise that marriage isn't working out.) Florida law forbids videotaping persons without their consent, and while hubby says he held his cell phone in plain view, he's not positive she knew he was recording and he's sure she didn't expressly consent. Given that she was apparently quite inebriated herself that evening, it's unclear that her consent would have been valid had it been given.

Also of note: Jezebel Paralegal's firm is representing their client, a "shock jock" DJ, against a defamation claim by someone who goes by "Bubba the Love Sponge Clem."

This looks like it'll be a case that just keeps on giving.

Jezebel Paralegal and Bubba the Love Sponge

Apology, and Another Story about a Paralegal Saving the Day

Wow! I have been offline for an entire month. My apologies! My St. Patrick's Day Resolution (because it's as good a day as any, that's why) is to be on here 2-3 times per week.

This is an excellent story to come back with. Hopefully, you'll never have to explain why the attorney you work for had a bag of marijuana fall out of his pocket in court, but if you do, this example should be instructive.
http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/bag_of_marijuana_falls_from_lawyers_pocket_in_court_paralegal_provides_expl

Lawyer's error costs firm big bucks; Paralegal gets blamed

 I ran across this article about a $1.5 billion screw-up at a prestigious law firm, and had to share. The initial lead line that I saw said something like "Paralegal commits billion dollar mistake," and I figured I ought to take a look so I could warn you not to do the same. 

Since--as you know--paralegals are supposed to be working under the supervision of a lawyer, I was pretty curious as to how this came about. And my suspicions were correct: yes, the paralegal committed the error, but multiple lawyers failed to take any steps to oversee her work, and then threw the paralegal under the bus. Kudos to the paralegal, who had absorbed enough of the law firm atmosphere to drag "some dude from the mailroom" with her. 

The moral of the story? Yes, we all expect you to do your best work. But no one person should be single-handedly responsible for a huge case. Everyone should be checking everyone else's work, not just nodding and signing off on it. I'm not sure how many billion-dollar deals are going on in the law offices of central Indiana, but if you're on a large case, don't be afraid to ask someone--anyone--okay, not the dude in the mailroom, but anyone else--to check your work. And if they just glance at it and sign off, you might be protected from liability, but the firm won't be. If you want to go above and beyond, insist that your work get a good going-over. They just might thank you later. Or at least, not throw you under the bus.

See the full story at http://abovethelaw.com/2015/01/mayer-brown-simpson-thacher-make-epic-screwup/