10 Paralegal Tips

• When drafting e-mails, paralegals should be mindful that they may be discoverable and they should omit personal references and comments.  Attorney, Client, and Work Product notations should be included on e-mail messages where appropriate.
• Clients often do not understand the legal or factual import of some interrogatories, or they may misunderstand a word or phrase in an interrogatory.  Using their unedited answers to interrogatories can therefore be damaging to the client’s case.  Preparing answers using information from the attorney’s work file may inadvertently waive a discovery privilege or immunity.  It is imperative that the attorney and/or paralegal carefully peruse the questions that are posed and decide the best source of an answer, if any answer is to be given. 
• Be familiar with the content and know where to final all rules, codes, and other regulations governing the attorneys in your firm and locale.
• Confirm answers to any ethical questions you may have by consulting the regulations and following up with your supervising attorney. 
• Know that an attorney’s livelihood demands that paralegals strictly adhere to the ethical rules.
• Make it clear to prospective clients or existing clients with new matters that only the attorney may agree to provide legal services.
• Tell individuals who are persistent in asking for an estimate of the fee that it is unethical for you to quote fees.
• When speaking with a client, close the doors and make sure that no third party is listening to the conversation.
• Protect your computer screen from being read by other persons by turning it away from office doors and windows or by obtaining a filter screen to place over the monitor.
• Do not talk about work-related matters when socializing with friends or in any public place.