Law Office Management for Paralegals

Book excerpt: Law Office Management for Paralegals, Fourth Edition is a comprehensive introduction to law office management, emphasizing ethics, law office culture, law office systems, and “soft skills,” such as communications and critical thinking. Assignments are drawn from real-world law office management situations and supported by innovative visual aids and learning tools. Students get hands-on practice with timekeeping, conflicts-checking, file management, trust accounting, business planning, correspondence, and much more. They are exposed to law office software, such as Clio, and learn to perform vital functions using other software and even freeware. Career profiles emphasize the importance of involvement in professional organizations, advancement in the legal field without obtaining a law degree, and that the legal profession is populated by men and women of all ages and backgrounds. New to the Fourth Edition: New ethical discussions: the obligation to keep up with current technology, disaster planning, and dealing with clients using crowdfunding. New technology discussions: artificial intelligence in legal practice, online notarization, client portals, and apps to make the practice of law more efficient and mobile. New discussions of law as a business: features of property insurance, malpractice insurance, insurance for and on employees; trends in office space. New soft skills discussions: dealing with incivility in the legal profession, managing staff through technology changes. Professors and students will benefit from: Author Laurel A. Vietzen’s outstanding reputation in the paralegal market. Drawing on her extensive background as a professor and practitioner, she clearly presents basic law office management and organization. Well-crafted assignments throughout the text help students hone practical skills such as critical thinking, organization, general communication, and computer proficiency. The text is particularly adaptable for an online or hybrid class.