10 Things I've Learned as a Virtual Paralegal

I have been a paralegal now for almost two years.  In these two years, I have learned quite a bit.

1.  This is your business.  Don't let your customers control your time or your calendar.  Set your hours and stick to them.  If your client-attorney has an after hours "emergency,"  charge a premium for this.  Set these guidelines up front, in your contract so that your client knows ahead of time that your time is valuable and you won't be available at 11:00 p.m. on Friday night, when he/she HAS to get something filed.

2. Take time for yourself.  Having a home office, it is so easy to get pulled into working in the evenings or on the weekends.  You go into your office to check your email and then 2 hours later you find yourself knee-deep in a project.  Sometimes I find that I have to close my office door to avoid the temptation of going in there and seeing what needs to be done.  I also no longer check my work email on the weekends.  If there is an emergency, believe me, your client-attorney will call or text you.  It would be a good idea to let your client-attorney know up front that you will not be checking email on the weekends or in the evening.

3.  Set your fees appropriately.  If you only charge $20 or $25 an hour, you are not putting in enough to cover your overhead.  You need to consider including enough to cover taxes, health insurance, savings, office supply and equipment, vacation time, etc.

4.  Invest in a bookkeeping program like Quickbooks.  This will save you a lot of time at the end of the year.

5.  Take a VACATION.  When you plan your vacation, let your client-attorneys know with plenty of notice,  and let them know you will not be available during this time.  Last year I went on vacation and still managed to work 40 hours during those 9 days.  So much for a vacation.

6.  If you are sick, REST.  If you are too sick to go to a "traditional firm,"  you are probably too sick to work at home as well.  This year, I had a bad case of bronchitis.  I stayed in bed but worked.  This ended up being the worst case of bronchitis I have ever had and I ended up in the hospital.  The next week I stayed in bed and rested. Believe it or not, my business did not crash and burn.  It didn't even really suffer at all.

7.  Working from home can be isolating.  Take time to network, go to CLE's, or go to lunch with a friend.  Technology has made it super easy to catch up with friends and colleagues using Skype or Spreecast.  Go to a Starbucks once a week just for a change of scenery and work there for a few hours.

8.  Have a back-up plan.  While working this past year, the weather was really bad and my power went out.    Luckily I keep my laptop charged and I have a wifi hotspot.  I was able to work for a few hours even though the power was out.  If you don't have a hot spot, go to Starbucks or a fast food restaurant that has wifi.  Also, make sure that you have a plan in place in case your computer crashes or your printer decides to quit working.  It is really helpful if you have a desktop and a laptop, and if you have a laser printer and an ink jet printer. Keep a list of your IT person or company handy, so that you can call when you have an issue.

9. Help your family and friends understand that during your working hours, you are working.  A lot of people think  that you are at home so you can just drop everything and help them with something.  But they need to understand that you are serious about your business and that your time is valuable.

10.  Keep a rolling list of office supplies needed.  Try ordering your office supplies/toner supplies only once a month and have them delivered to you.  This will save you time, as you won't be wasting time going to the office supply store and money, as you won't be tempted to buy items not on your list.  

I hope this list helps you.  I have changed some of my policies and procedures so that my business benefits not only my clients but me as well!

What Can a Virtual Paralegal Do For You?

A lot of attorneys are unfamiliar with the term "Virtual Paralegal."  If utilized correctly, a Virtual Paralegal can be the greatest asset to a solo or small law practice.

The benefits to hiring a virtual paralegal are:

Pay for billable work only.  In a traditional law firm, you would pay for 8 hours per day, and the paralegal does 3-4 hours of billable work.  In addition, you pay for breaks, sick time, vacation time, taxes and insurance, etc.

 A virtual paralegal only bills for the time he/she actually works.  This really helps your bottom line because technically you are only paying the paralegal a percentage of what you are billing your client. (example:  Draft a petition, you bill your client $100 in paralegal time and your paralegal bills you $50).

You don't need the extra office space and equipment.  This is a real advantage to small law firms that don't necessarily have the space for a paralegal.  The virtual paralegal works from home.  You also save by not having to supply the desk, chairs, computer equipment and upgrades and office supplies that a traditional paralegal would need.  Instead, the virtual paralegal supplies his/her own office equipment and computer and software upgrades as needed.

A virtual paralegal is interested in building repeat business and great relationships for referrals.  This means that you will get the highest quality service with each project you outsource to them.

The virtual paralegal field is booming and technology today makes outsourcing especially easy by allowing online document collaboration, video conferencing, cloud storage and sharing of files.

You can hire virtual paralegals on a project basis or an ongoing monthly basis.

A virtual paralegal can do everything a traditional paralegal can do:

• Draft Pleadings, Discovery, Correspondence;
• Summarize Deposition Transcripts and Medical Records;
• Schedule Hearings, Mediation and Meetings/Conferences;
• Review Documents;
• Organize Files;
• Prepare Trial Notebooks;
• Attend and Assist at Trial;
• and much more.

Consider hiring a virtual paralegal today!  

For more information, contact me at delatorrehg@gmail.com.

Happy Paralegal Day!

The Texas Senate declared October 23 to be Paralegal Day.

Sometimes I think we have a thankless job.  A job that is definitely not for everyone.  It requires someone who doesn't mind hard work and perseverance, one who can handle deadlines and put out fires left and right.

A paralegal has awesome organization skills and amazing attention to detail.  They work as hard on a case as an attorney but rarely get the credit.  They truly are the wind beneath the attorney's wings.

So if you get a moment, thank a paralegal today!

Virtual Paralegal - What does that mean?

Oftentimes, I am asked the age old question, "What do you do?"  To which I reply, "I am a virtual paralegal."     When I answer this question, there are always more questions to follow.

"What does that mean?"  "What does a virtual paralegal do?"  "How does that work?"

This is always when I wish that I had written, perfected and memorized my elevator speech.  So to help me start fleshing one out, I thought I would write this post, and tell you the advantages and disadvantages of being a virtual paralegal.  But before I begin, my only disclaimer is that being a virtual paralegal isn't for everyone.  (You have to be self-motivated, you have to have a desire to work alone for the most part, you have to have your own equipment and your own "IT department" should your equipment fail.)

Being a virtual paralegal has been the perfect job for me. I really don't think I could jump back in to the 8-5 grind of a traditional law firm again.

The advantages I have found so far for me:

Flexible Hours - this is the most important thing for me.  I was a stay at home mom for 8 years, (I was at every class party, I was always room mom, I went on every field trip, etc.)  When I started working, I found that it was almost impossible to be there for my kids when they needed me.  I never went on field trips or class parties, in fact, it was always a hassle to take off to take my kids to the doctor when they were sick.  This was very frustrating to me.  So when I looked into becoming a virtual paralegal, this was my number one reason, flexibility.

No Micro-managers - the one thing an attorney who hires a virtual paralegal needs to understand is that  you can't micro-manage your paralegal.  You can't stand over his/her shoulder and edit something, or make sure something is being done right.  You have to trust that the paralegal you hired can do the job.  Of course the attorney always reviews the work before it goes out, but there is some faith in the paralegal to begin with.

Unlimited money making potential - unlike a traditional paralegal who reports for duty each day and gets a set salary or hourly wage, a virtual paralegal can set their own rates, can take on as many or as few clients as possible.  This  is definitely a benefit if you price your services competitively.  But remember to always take into consideration that you  will not have a vacation or sick days unless you pad that into your price.  In addition, you will need to put aside money for taxes, insurance and future equipment upgrades.

Minimal interruptions - At a traditional office, I was interrupted many times throughout the day, not just by my attorney but also, by my co-workers, who just had to tell me the latest gossip or their weekend plans.  And while I love to gossip and gab as much as the next person, I  don't like losing my concentrations or my train of thought.  If you are like that too, this is a good fit.  You can keep your email closed and only check it on a certain schedule and you can make and return phone calls at certain times a day to keep your productivity level at the maximum.

A couple other added benefits I have found are that I get to see my husband more often than when I worked in the traditional setting.  He works evenings and in the traditional firm setting, he would be asleep when I left for work, and I would be asleep when he got home from work.  Now, we spend a lot more time together.  I am able to work uninterrupted in the mornings and then when he wakes up we spend time together until he leaves for work in the afternoon.  Then I get more work done in the afternoon.  So it works great for us.  Another benefit, is that my pets are here with me. They make great supervisors.

Some of the disadvantages I have found are:

You get paid when you work only - This is important, because in the traditional sense, you get breaks, sick days and vacation days.  But unless you pad that into your pricing, when you are not working you are not making money.

Health Insurance - You have to provide your own.  If you have a spouse that has it available from their job, that may be a good option.

Can be isolating - If you tend to need consistent social interaction, this may not be for you.  I get plenty of interaction with my client-attorneys, their clients and other virtual paralegals/assistants who work with me.

Its all up to you - The work gets done by you alone, so if you don't do the work, if you aren't self-motivated, the work won't get done.  Organization and having systems in place are also key to making this work for you.

Your Equipment - You furnish the equipment.  If your computer crashes, you have to buy another or get that one fixed.

Office Space - You will need a good, quiet space to work.  I really think you need an office, especially if you have other family members living with you.  The benefit is that if you qualify, this is a tax deductible expense.  Obviously you will want to consult a tax specialist or bookkeeper to determine your tax benefits.

If being a virtual paralegal is something you are interested in, I urge you to do your research first.  There are a couple of really good resources that I have found to be helpful.  The links to their websites are below.

http://paralegalmentor.com/  This is Vicki Voisin's website.  She is a wonderful resource not just on virtual paralegals, but on paralegals individually.  I would totally recommend subscribing to her ezine.

http://clericaladvantage.com/  Tina Marie Hilton has been doing this for a while and she is extremely knowledgeable in setting up a virtual business and what you need to consider.

Everything considered, this has been the best choice for me and my family.  I hope you will find this information useful.

Heather