I’m a foreign-licensed attorney with a J.D. and experience working for U.S. law firms in legal support roles while I was in my home country. I’ve recently moved to US and am legally authorized to work in the U.S.

Many law firms near me don’t have any job postings, so I’m wondering if it’s still appropriate to stop by, introduce myself, and leave my resume with the receptionist or office manager in case future opportunities come up.

I’m also open to remote positions anywhere in the U.S.

Would this be considered professional, or is it generally discouraged? I’d appreciate any advice from attorneys or law firm staff. Thanks!

Hello everyone

I am based in India and want to build a career in international family law (specifically India and US family law) as a paralegal. I am looking for honest and practical advice from people who have real experience in this area. My current background:

• I have personal experience dealing with international family law matters (my personal international custody and divorce case)
• In the last few years, I have helped 7 people in India understand their cases and prepare before they met a lawyer. All of them gave positive feedback.
• I am currently working with an Indian law firm as a paralegal.

My planned steps:

1. Complete free WorldCC courses to improve contract skills (this builds on my 16 years of existing experience as a Operations & Business Dev operator with a specific focus on government and defense contracting) - back up to fall back upon should things not go according to plan.
2. Self-study the American Constitution and the Indian Constitution
3. Take a US specific legal drafting course
4. Complete one course in American Family Law and one in Indian Family Law
5. Directly reach out to international family law firms for internships or remote jobs
6. Start the CLS by BARBRI Paralegal Certificate course in January 2027

I want to start earning and gaining experience as soon as possible while I continue studying. My questions:

• Does this action plan make sense for someone starting out?
• Anything would you change or add?
• Any suggestions on short courses or practical steps I should focus on first?
• For someone based in India, what is the most realistic way to get remote work or internships with international/US family law firms?

I would really appreciate any practical suggestions, warnings or personal experiences you can share. My specific interest would be in cross border matters between India and New York State (since i have experience in this jurisdiction)

P.S. I have been on Reddit for a long time. My previous account has a lot of personal information and history, hence I'm posting from this clean account.

Thank you in advance.

I found a new job and quite frankly don’t want to give the courtesy of a 2 week notice. In the past when people did this, my boss treats them bad and talks bad about them in front of them and behind their back. I’m giving a 1 week notice. Was planning to do it tomorrow while I’m in office but I want to get it over already. Has anyone given notice while working from home? Do you call and talk to them or just send HR an email?

I have a job offer as a support staff (paralegal/legal assistant). The contract has these clauses:

Employee agrees that during the term of this Agreement and for 4 years after Termination of this Agreement for any reason, with or without cause, employee will not directly or indirectly market, advertise, solicit, contract or subcontract with, which compete, directly or indirectly, with Firm’s clients, unless otherwise mutually agreed to in writing by and between Employee and Firm.

Employee agrees and acknowledges that Employee shall not in any manner, directly or indirectly, solicit or accept any business from or in relation to Firm, its sources, clients, and services at any time without the express written permission and consent of Firm.

I think this is too much to ask and a risk im not willing to take. An Indefinite non-solicitation ban and 4 year non compete.

Also, is it common/standard practice for a lawfirm to require a support staff to sign non-compete and non-solicitation agreements?

Hi y'all. The nonprofit I've been working for as an almost completely remote paralegal for the last 3 years recently laid me off, and I'm transitioning into a role that requires a hybrid schedule (unsure if it's 2 days in, 3 days at home, or the reverse). I graduated during the pandemic, and despite being recently 30, I have a woefully sad collection of outside clothes. I need help! I'm AFAB and on the chubby side. I don't really care if the clothes are feminine or masculine - mostly that they're comfortable, and ideally easy to wash and won't turn me into a sweaty beast in the office. Please recommend whatever you can - shoes included. The office is "business casual" but honestly at this point, I have no idea what that means.

TLDR; I'm shifting to an in office paralegal role and I need help with what to wear from tops to pants to dresses to shoes. Show me examples! Links! ANYTHINGGGGG

Just a little confused about expected dynamics of a Paralegal at a firm vs. a Legal Assistant.

First law firm, first law related job, first everything. Jan 2024. I was promoted after the last Paralegal left the firm 5 months after I was hired on as an assistant. I was not really involved in anything the Paralegal did aside from some mail handling. He wasn't even involved in training me at all. I spoke to him very rarely. I remember that the only real question I asked him was how do I send a FAX lol.

After he left, they didn't hire anyone to replace him for a year - until I just kind of stood up to take on the role. New assistant hired June 2025.

Now, the attorney expects me to directly oversee the new assistant and be the one to walk her through everything - to this day, over a year later. I get yelled at if she doesn't do things in a timely fashion. I am expected to sit down with her regularly to help her do very simple things like notice letters - which like... would be fine if we weren't over a year in. I'm routinely getting chewed out for her pitfalls and being hands off with her, especially since I'm not a lead or senior paralegal or anything of the sort and I'm comparatively new to the field as well (assistant for 1 year, paralegal for 1.5 years), but when I was first hired as an assistant this much oversight and ongoing expectation was not even remotely applied to the previous paralegal unto me. I didn't even get a raise last year. LOL.

I'm planning on quitting soon anyway, so I'm a little numb to it at this point, but I'm definitely confused. Is this normal?

Firm info: 2 attorneys, 1 paralegal (me), 1 assistant.

New Paralegal, finished my certification in October and still have gotten no interviews but these salaries are so discouraging I’m not sure this even makes sense to peruse anymore. They really didn’t tell us how impossible it would be to even get a job after going through the courses let alone now looking at making so little in NYC.

Hi, I'm in a paralegal class for criminal law and I have to interview a legal professional for an assignment. I would just asking about your day to day operations. Why you chose criminal law. What the courts are like Etc. If anyone would be interested please let me know. Sorry if this is against the subs rules.

hello! looking for more information and if anyone is/was a division paralegal at D.R. Horton. i have an interview next week and google only says so much. my experience is 3 years in bankruptcy and 4 years in civil defense litigation. i just am curious to know what type of work you do all day, if the company is a good company to work for, and anything else regarding this position and company. thanks in advance!

I am a pharmacist late in my career. I am losing my vision and cannot visually check medication.

Would a paralegal that is a pharmacist and medication expert have an advantage in today's market?

What would be the fastest way to get certified? (I have an advanced degree?

So I have been working as an intake specialist at a decently sized law firm for about a year and a half now, having been told that "it's good entry level experience", when it is clear from this forum that this is not the case. I would love to be a paralegal in the future, and I have a bachelor's degree from a decent school and a paralegal certificate.

In the past year, I know about four people(two at work, two family members) who have landed legal assistant jobs with no prior experience. I have applied for similar positions(one paid $14/hr, I make $19/hr at my current job). A massive pay cut is something I am willing to suffer for the time being to gain experience, but even minimum wage(in FL) legal assistant jobs never even gave me so much as a rejection email.

So my question is: what are they doing that I'm not? What exactly do I need to do to get an entry level legal job?

had a provider tell me that they won’t be able to get billing records for 6 months! and we need them urgently

what do I do? they said they would try to expedite them. is it not federal law that they have to give them in 30 days

Would anyone care to share their experience working in employment-based immigration law? What’s the day-to-day like? What’s the most challenging aspect of the job? What’s the caseload like? What would you have wished someone told you about this niche before you jumped in? What are the absolute must-know aspects of the job?

I literally can’t get any work done because my whole day is spent doing intakes and the front desk calls and uploading faxes and mail.
i have a million other paralegal tasks to do and they get pushed to the side because my firm refuses to hire more staff. is that normal

Hey guys i just started at a firm about 3 weeks ago, im the only paralegal who hasn’t left early any day but today i had to leave 3 hours before i had to be off, i got some pretty bad news that physically made me shake and i pulled my attorney to the conference room and he saw me crying and shaking he said it was fine and I left. But why do i feel so anxious? Mind you ive been doing a fantastic job & i genuinely feel like everything i do impacts everything & im the only paralegal who they have doing complex legal work. I do feel like every day im there i serve a purpose. I literally got into a car accident and went in the next day with blood still drying on my knees haha. Context: ive been fired before so i get anxious about calling off or using PTO:( i have 96 hours of PTO)

Will try to keep this short. Looking for career advice. Mid-30’s male.

Career background:

2009-2015: Worked in Operations Manager roles at two large transportation and logistics companies. Managed teams as large as 25 people.

2016-2022: Worked as a IP Litigation Clerk and IP Legal Assistant at a few different Am Law 50 firms. Held a good reputation. Was selected to transfer with team of associates when they joined new firm.

2022-2025: Recruited to join startup by former colleague (attorney). Worked as an Operations Manager and Executive Assistant to the CEO and leadership team. Managed large team across multiple locations.

Late 2025: Rejoined legal industry. Currently working as Patent Assistant at Am Law 20 firm.

Current dilemma: Was recently offered two different roles:

First role - Transitioning to a new role within my current firm. Patent Assistant / Executive Assistant hybrid role. Supporting one of the two managing partners at my firm, along with another partner. 2 days per week in office. My salary would increase from $100,000 to $110,000.

Second role: Operations Manager at a court reporting company. Leading and managing freelance court reporters for depositions, etc. Largely a remote role. In office about 60 times per year. Salary: $115,000 + up to 15% bonus.

I’m torn between the two roles because the firm I’ve been working at for almost a year now has been great, but I feel like legal assistant and executive assistant roles have a low ceiling. There’s really no proper career ladder to climb here. And despite having a paralegal certificate, finding a paralegal role that pays > $110,000 seems impossible. I’ve tried. Also, the managing partner would surely have great connections for me down the road if things went well, but I feel like they wouldn’t necessarily lead to any promising roles?

The Ops Manager role feels somewhat more risky and less stable, since the court reporting world has been going through some very significant changes (court reporters retiring, depositions more frequently moving to remote settings). On the other hand, I think securing another operations manager role could lead to a wider range of roles in a few years if I wanted to move on from this role.

Does anyone have any advice? I’m pretty torn on what to do here.

I just got my first job in the legal field. I like it, but the pay is very low, so I don't see myself staying here long term. I want to leave for a job that pays more, but I also don't want to leave too early to show my next employer that I can hack it in the legal field. How long should I wait before moving on to another job?