Your Paralegal Resume and
Professional Email Etiquette
April 29, 2010
Presented by:
Curtis A. Linder
President/Owner
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Curtis Linder
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Former Litigation Paralegal
Paralegal training at the college level (ISU)
Paralegal hiring and placement for 24 years
Hired and placed hundreds of paralegals on
contract assignments or direct-hire jobs at
Chicago law firms & corporate legal departments
Receives and reviews hundreds of paralegal and
lawyer resumes each year
Owner of legal staffing and placement firm
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
What We Will Cover Today
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Your resume – basic formatting
How to properly email your resume
Your resume – do’s and don’ts
Resume types and structure
Advanced resume formatting tips
Getting your resume to the right person
On-line job searching networking
Time available for your questions
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Presenter’s Resume Credentials
Chicago Daily Law Bulletin’s “Judgment Day” articles;
resume writing tips, and resume reviews:
Source: www.lawbulletin.com/classifieds/
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Some Basics
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Always email your resume…
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Unless the prospective employer or
the job ad specifically says
otherwise
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
My Most Important Tip Today is…
Name your document correctly:
 My resume, on my computer is
named:
“Curtis Linder resume.doc”
 “resume.doc” is not a good
name for your resume
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Why “resume.doc” is a Bad Name
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Forces the recipient to rename the
document if and when they save it.
If they do save it, it will replace any other
document with same name.
Forces recipient to open the document to
find out who sent it.
Indicates to the recipient that the sender
does not understand basis office skills.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Your Contact Information
Curtis A. Linder
123 Main Street
Brookfield, IL 60513
Cell Phone (217) 555-1234
Email: [email protected]
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Three Main Steps – And Goals
In simplest terms:
 The email itself. To get your resume, as
attached, to a recipient.
 The words in your email. To get the
recipient to “open” and view the attached
document – your resume.
 Your resume. Once viewed, to get the
recipient to invite you in for a job interview.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Your Cover Email
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Name Your Resume Properly, Not Like This:
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Summary or Objective Section
If you do use Summary or Objective – it should
be located at the top of your resume – just below
your contact information.
Objective: A paralegal with formal paralegal training,
seeking an entry-level position with a Chicago-area
law firm or corporate legal department.
or…
Summary: A corporate paralegal with two years of
experience supporting complex real estate and other
business transactions seeking greater challenges.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Combined Summary and Objective
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SUMMARY/OBJECTIVE: An extremely bright
college graduate (cum laude) with formal
paralegal training from an ABA-approved
paralegal training program – seeking to gain
additional law firm experience with a law firm or
within the law department of a corporation.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Should Objective be on Resume?
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Some resume experts say it is fine to have a
section called Objective (or Summary) on a
resume; other experts say not to have one.
If you do place an Objective section on your
resume make sure it is well-written.
Not a very good Objective: “To work at your
law firm”.
This expert thinks it is fine to have a Summary
or Objective section on your resume.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Should Desired Salary Level or
“Salary History” be on Resume?
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No. That comes later on in process.
Since you are likely just starting out in
the paralegal field – you should not
state a desired salary on your resume.
But, if the job ad asks for “Salary
History,” place that in your cover letter
which as we have learned is your email.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Resume Type
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Chronological vs. Functional
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What is the difference?
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Chronological or Functional
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Chronological Resume shows your work
experiences in reverse chronological
order. Most recent job position on top.
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Functional Resume shows your work
experience and skills gathered into
groups by skill area or job function.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Chronological or Functional?
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99% of the paralegal resumes I
receive are Chronological
With the other 1% being Functional
Functional resumes are much
more difficult for the reader to use
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Think Like The Recipient
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Tip of the Day!
Great example
of a proper way
to attach a
properly named
resume to an
outgoing email.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Resume Tips
Do not “bury” your name and contact information
in the “footer” of the document.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
What Is Wrong Here?
An actual email I received…
Hi, I am sending you my resume for the paralegal position. I hope that you find interest in
my resume. Have a great day!
"For tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today."
A [regional] Proverb
Paralegal [first name] [last name]
[College Name] University- Paralegal Certificate
University of [State], Bachelor of Arts degree
Attached to the email was document in MS Word format named:
Official_ resume[1][1][1][1].doc
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
More Basic Resume Tips
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Use proper grammar and punctuation in the
“cover” email you intend to send.
Do not use “first person” in your resume –
such as “I”, “me”, “mine” or “my”.
Update your resume quarterly.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
In Outline Format – Use of Bullets?
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Be careful using bullets points – those little black
dots like these show below left:
● This is how they
● Look on your resume
● On your computer
☻They may end up
♫ Looking like this on
♥ Recipient's computer
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Email Protocol
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Make sure your resume document
is virus-free before emailing it as
an attachment.
Use the email Subject line:
“paralegal candidate resume
attached”.
The body (text area) of your email
is your “Cover Letter”.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Email Protocol
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Use professional looking email
address name. Not this:
[email protected]
Email resume to a friend or relative
and ask to see how it looks on their
computer before sending it out to
an employer.
Don’t rely on spell check!
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Formatting – Look, Feel and Fit
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If using a two-page resume, then
use all of the second page. See
my example on next slide.
Balance is key – how does it look
when printed on paper?
Page margins and font size.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
A “Two-Page Resume” Poorly Formatted
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More on Formatting
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Use Reverse Chronological style.
Don’t rely on Microsoft Word’s Resume
Wizard template as document builder.
Check the bottom of the document for any
extra embedded “hard returns” (the Enter
key) – that will leak word onto an
inadvertent or blank second page when
printed or viewed.
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Resume Example – Template
Microsoft Word’s Resume Template:
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Look Like a Pro – Insider Tips
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Create in Adobe PDF format
Don’t create (or store) your resume
on your current employer’s
computer - ever
If you list computer skills on
resume, you better know them
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
More Insider Tips
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View document in Word’s
“Show/Hide” - the ¶ key (slide 35)
List interests (hobbies), but only if
they carry weight, such as Eagle
Scout, private pilot’s license,
SCUBA diver, Real Estate Broker
license, or advanced certifications
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Advanced Resume Tips
Adobe .PDF Files
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Do’s and Don’ts
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Do not us abbreviations: NFPA, KCC,
PACE, IPA, many others.
Avoid using Word’s “Insert Tables” style.
Have name, contact info. and “Page Two”
on page two of your two-page resume.
“References Provided Upon Request” –
not need (of course they will be).
Health, age, marital status, children – No!
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Do Not Insert Extra Line Spaces
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View and Edit in Reveal Codes
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Let’s talk about
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Build your profile from your resume
It is like Facebook – but professional
Employers and recruiter use it
Update your profile at least monthly
Begin connecting to classmates,
Conduct job market research
Use LinkedIn’s Job section
Strive for 100% profile completeness
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Conclusions
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Before emailing resume – think what it
would look like if you received it.
Have your paralegal friends proofread
your resume and email to them as a test.
Keep your resume current (update
quarterly) and store it were accessible.
Use email Subject line properly.
Name the document correctly!
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.
Any Questions?
For practice – you are
welcome to email
me your resume
[email protected]
Copyright 2010 Linder Legal Staffing Inc.