Bankruptcy Paralegal
(Male, Age 23) from Brookline, MA
This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Male aged 23 who works as a Bankruptcy Paralegal in Brookline, MA. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.
At a Glance
Current Job
Basic data on your current job
| Job Title | Bankruptcy Paralegal |
|---|---|
| Salary | $21,000 |
| Other Compensation | None Set |
| Hours/Week | 32 |
| Company Size | (not answered) |
| Location | Brookline, MA |
| Years Experience | 9 months |
Career Ratings
Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)
| Years in Career | 0 |
|---|---|
| Education | (not answered) |
| Income Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Interest Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Work-Life Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Fulfilment Rating | 0 / 10 |
Current job Q&A
Describe the type of organization you work for.
Our 5 person law office deals primarily with bankruptcy, personal injury and motor vehicle accidents. We also work on class action lawsuits and civil litigation.
Describe your job role and responsibilities.
My primary job responsibilities deal with bankruptcy law. However, at times, I may have to draft briefs, medical records requests, etc for our MVA and PI lawyer. Primarily I draft the bankruptcy petitions that are filed to court, I file the petitions along with all corresponding documents and I mainly work on Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. Additionally, I do general office duties such as answering telephones and scanning/copying docs.
Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
No benefits since I do not work 40 hours +
Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
undercompensated
Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
Yes I primarily work with the other paralegal along with both attorneys and our IT person on various issues.
Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes
Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes
Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 1
Benefits: 2
Hours: 3
Co-Workers: 7
Supervisors: 8
Job Title: 6
Level of Responsibility: 4
The Actual Work: 5
A day in the life of…
Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:
| 5am to 6am | |
| 6am to 7am | |
| 7am to 8am | Commute to Work |
| 8am to 9am | Arrive at Work. Check emails from bankruptcy court and voicemails. Begin planning out the day. Speak with my boss and he will instruct me on what is important to pursue for the day. |
| 9am to 10am | Meeting with Client. New bankruptcy client meetings involve collecting documents pertaining to the client’s financial status. Additionally, we discuss fee and run a credit report for the client. |
| 10am to 11am | Preparing bankruptcy petition for client. Collect all documents needed to file with petition and send via internet to court. Once we receive notice that the court has received the documents, we notify client. Court will also appoint a trustee as well as schedule a day for the hearing to take place. |
| 11am to 12pm | Once we receive notice from the court assigning a trustee to the case, we prepare evidence to be sent to the trustee prior to the hearing. The trustee needs to see the backup paperwork , therefore we need to prepare email as well as a packet to send to the trustee with all supporting documents. |
| 12pm to 1pm | Scanning documents pertaining to bankruptcy cases, MVA and Personal Injury cases. Once we complete scanning, we log all documents scanned into our database and then send the documents for filing. |
| 1pm to 2pm | Lunch. |
| 2pm to 3pm | Once I return from lunch, I prepare all documents that need to be filed into stacks pertaining to each type of case, whether it be MVA, PI or Bankruptcy. Filing consists of putting the most recents docs at the top of the file. |
| 3pm to 4pm | Meeting with Attorney to discuss progress within the pending bankruptcy cases. I will have to present the cases I am currently working on to the attorney and let him know where each one stands. Additionally, I will have questions to ask the attorney regarding any cases where I do not have sufficient documents. |
| 4pm to 5pm | Leave Work |
| 5pm to 6pm | N/A |
| 6pm to 7pm | N/A |
| 7pm to 8pm | N/A |
| 8pm to 9pm | N/A |
| 9pm to 10pm | N/A |
| 10pm to 11pm | N/A |
| 11pm to 12am | N/A |
Table of Contents
How you got your job
How did you get your current job?
Craigslist
What was the application process?
Submitted resume via email along with cover letter
Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
1 interview with a questionnaire which entailed different situations as well as questions pertaining to law.
If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
Do not remember
Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes, I feel very confident with my work skills.
Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
Training involving the Bankruptcy Process as well as the Bankruptcy Software we use.
Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes, I have a degree in politics, laws and the courts.
If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
N/A
If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Get started within an office. Any type of office experience will help alot as well as getting your foot in the door at a law firm.
What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
organization skills, technical skills, legal skills, personable skills
Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Some College
What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Have fun with it but do not get stressed out because it can become very overwhelming.
Long-term career plans
Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
Yes, because I want to eventually become a lawyer.
What are your current career goals?
Be a successful lawyer that helps resolve people’s problems.
Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
N/A
Prior work history
Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:
| Title | Length | Salary | Description | |
| Prior Job 1 | Legal Secretary | 5 months | $15.00/hour | Worked part-time at Workers Compensation and Disability Law Office. general office duties as well as preparing documents. |
| Prior Job 2 | Legal Assistant | 8 months | $12.00/hour | Worked part-time at Real Estate Law Office. general office duties as well as preparing documents. |
Educational background
Please list your educational background:
High School GPA:2.8
| GPA | School | Degree | |
| College (Undergraduate) or Technical/Vocational |
3.3 | Boston University | Politics |
| Graduate or Professional (Masters or Doctorate) |
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