Pros
Overall, it’s a good place to work. The work is interesting and there is fun to be had. On the whole, the people I work with are enjoyable, helpful, and hard-working. There are lots of different personalities, but somehow it works. The workload is manageable with enough to keep you busy without becoming overloaded (although some days do get crazy). We get a weekly workload survey where you can put if you have enough work, too much, or need more which is very nice because if you get overloaded, you can look at it to see who might be available to help out. It’s a fun place, with quarterly after-work events, lunch and learns, and occasional ice cream field trips. There are also snacks provided in the breakroom. Lots of reviews mentioned a good work/life balance, which is a big perk. It’s also very easy to flex your schedule if you need time off for appointments. You can just come early, stay late, or work through lunch with no problem.
Kontras
Having a good work/life balance does tend to translate to lower than average pay. While we did get the Coolest Places to Work for 2018, one of the reasons listed was paid time for volunteer work, however, I have seen no evidence that is actually something offered. The firm is growing very rapidly and I don’t always get the impression that this growth has been thought out and planned for enough. The clients can be very difficult and unpleasant to deal with. I know this is true anywhere, but we seem to have a higher percentage. While the job title is paralegal, it is really more like legal secretary. Answering phones takes up a lot of the day, and not in a talking to and helping clients way, but in a taking messages and transferring calls kind of way. There’s also a lot of scheduling appointments and sending out mail. If you are hoping to be doing legal research, writing motions, etc., you will be very disappointed. There is an unspoken pecking order where attorneys can come in later and/or leave earlier while support staff has to punch a clock, take lunch at a specified time, and make up time missed. It can be frustrating to watch an attorney leave at 4:30 because they don’t have anything else to do that day while we have to run out the clock even if we have finished all of our work. Law clerks also rank above paralegals, with opportunities to go to court, individual time learning from attorneys, and meatier assignments.