TRUST, INTEGRITY AND
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TAYLOR LAW PARTNERS is a full-service law firm that has served
Fayetteville with trust, integrity and experience since 1986. Its team
offers expertise in virtually every area of legal practice including
criminal defense, personal injury, family law and estate planning.
While the firm has many talented lawyers, it takes more than
attorneys to make a law firm successful.
“There are several different paths you can take to find out if a career
in law is for you,” says managing partner Tim Myers. He says most
people think becoming an attorney is the only way to have a law
career, but lawyers rely on
other team members to do
important work. “There are
many careers that don’t
require a law degree,”
he says. “We have legal
secretaries, legal assistants
and paralegals. They’re the
real brains.”
Denise Hertz works as a
paralegal with three of the
firm’s lawyers. A paralegal
does important legal work at
the direction of an attorney.
That work includes researching cases, drafting documents, meeting
with clients and communicating with the court. To be a paralegal
or legal assistant, you must have a certification, training or work
experience that qualifies you for the job, and understand legal
procedures. It’s a career with high demands. Paralegals must
become an expert on each case they work on.
“I’m the liaison between the attorney and everyone else,” Hertz
explains. “You have to be very organized, be detail-oriented
and have good time management and communication skills. I’m
responsible for writing and preparing documents for each case, and
making sure the attorney has the information he or she needs.”
“A degree isn’t as important as motivation,” Hertz explains. “You
need to be a self-starter and able to work on your own. You have
to be on top of things and be proactive to make sure you meet
deadlines and everything is done correctly.”
She says the work paralegals do can make or break a case. “I’ve
had attorneys text me from the courtroom saying the file I prepared
really helped them, and I live for those moments. I like to know that
what I’m doing makes a difference.”
Both Hertz and Myers say a career in law isn’t like what you see on
TV. “You may work 60 or 80 hours a week preparing for a trial,”
Myers says. “There’s a lot of paperwork, reading and research, but
it’s worth it.”
“This isn’t just a job you do for eight
hours a day and go home,” Hertz
agrees. “It’s a profession – it gets in
your blood.”
If you’re thinking about a future
legal career, Myers says focusing
on certain skills can help set you up
for success. “English and journalism
classes are good because so
much of what we do involves
writing and communication,”
he explains. “Computer skills in
Word, WordPerfect and Excel are
important.”
The way you present yourself also matters. “Personality is important
because you’re representing the firm. You need to have a
professional demeanor and be respectful of people,” Hertz says.
If you aren’t sure a career in the courtroom is for you, don’t count
law out altogether. “There are some jobs where you never have to
go to court,” Myers says. “We do a lot of work involving real estate,
banking and estate planning, so if you’re interested in accounting or
business, there are opportunities in those areas.”
Taylor Law Partners will continue growing to serve the needs of
clients in the region. The law firm offers employer-paid insurance, a
401(k) plan and other benefits to its team members. To learn more,
visit http://taylorlawpartners.com.
FAYETTEVILLE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
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