The new year is often a time for budgeting and looking for good deals. As ILSPA students are eligible to purchase a TOTUM PRO card, we wanted to share some exciting updates and information for 2022.

TOTUM PRO is an exclusive membership benefit which allows you access to a wealth of savings and offers on everyday essentials as well as some treats! TOTUM PRO unlocks discounts on lots of brands, from groceries to travel and luxury items. It couldn’t be easier to start saving, so just click on the link to find out more:

https://www.totum.com/se/student-discount/cat/totum-pro

Here is a selection of vacancies from our Legal Secretary Jobs Board this month:

Experienced Legal EAs/Secretaries – Armstrong Teasdale Ltd     

Location: London

Salary: £35,000  

Armstrong Teasdale is seeking bright and experienced legal secretary/EAs to join our Corporate and Commercial teams.  This is an exciting opportunity to join a US law firm in its first international office and during a period of growth.  The firm has 12 additional offices throughout the US and a total of more than 640 lawyers and staff internationally.

View the full job description here:           

https://www.institutelegalsecretaries.com/jobs/candidate/job/188840/

The new year is a great time to reflect on how you can help yourself, others and the world around us. As time goes on, we are becoming more and more aware of the effect we are having on the planet and what we can do to reduce our impact. If you would like to make some meaningful New Year’s resolutions, here are some ideas:

1. Spend more time in nature

If I asked you to estimate how many passwords you have, what would your guess be? 20? Maybe 30?

Chances are you’re underestimating. According to research by NordPass, the average person has 100 passwords.

If you’re supporting multiple executives, chances are that number is even higher for you.

Think about it. You need a password to boot up your work computer, log in to your network, access your office intranet, open your project management software and access your cloud server. That’s five passwords before you can even start your workday!

Do you work with sensitive material? Your files are probably password protected. Do you handle your executive’s inbox? There’s another password.

Here is a selection of vacancies from our Legal Secretary Jobs Board this month:

Support and Volunteer Co-ordinator – Lawcare  

Location: Uk Wide - working from home

Salary: £25,000  

Do you want to make a positive difference to mental wellbeing in the legal community? Lawcare is recruiting for a Support and Volunteer Coordinator to join their small, supportive, and dedicated team. This is a fantastic opportunity for someone with experience of working in the legal sector who is looking for a new challenge and wants to put their expertise to inspiring and meaningful use.

View the full job description here:           

ILSPA is delighted to announce our new partnership with The Legists.

The Legists is a job platform dedicated to the legal profession, optimising the best innovative recruiting solutions to find the ideal employer or employee for you. Whether you're looking to advance your career, break into the industry or find your next employee, The Legists is a good place to make that happen.

The job platform advertises a broad range of roles from private practices (sole practitioners, boutique firms, City firms, national firms), international and US firms, in-house organisations, and the public sector. They host opportunities for a variety of legal positions including Paralegals, Clerks, Secretaries and all support staff.

Whilst we all know we should wear seat belts when in a car, how often have you or someone you know driven off while still fiddling to secure the belt? Alternatively, have you ever had to ask your passengers “Have you got your seat belt on?” after the journey has started?

As a driver you might be acutely aware of your responsibilities when it comes to children travelling with you, but what about older passengers? Where does legal responsibility rest – on the driver to insist that belts are put on, or on the passengers to look out for themselves?

Apprenticeships are an arrangement in which someone learns and trains whilst working. Since 2016, a number of organisations including law firms have launched legal apprenticeships programmes. Doing a legal apprenticeship would help one avoid the increasingly expensive costs which may be associated with university degrees. Going through this route, the candidate will be paid a salary throughout the scheme. Those who choose legal apprenticeships can expect to see the same standards as those who choose traditional routes.

This article will focus its discussions on general legal apprenticeships with a focus on apprenticeships which could be used to qualify as a Legal Secretary.

Who can apply?

The requirements of a legal apprenticeship are generally:

Can a contract employee become permanent? Absolutely. Businesses hiring temporary staff will often consider these candidates for a permanent position, depending on the needs of the company. While there is no guarantee that you’ll receive a permanent job role as a temporary recruit or freelancer, there are definitely advantages if you decide to seek a position at the company. So, how do you go from a temp to perm recruit? Here, we share our top 13 ways to go from a temp to a permanent contract.

What is a temp to perm role?

As a law degree student at the University of Sussex, Evelina Tarabuta has a keen interest and in-depth knowledge of law. When seeing how competitive the job market was for law graduates, she realised that she needed something to give her some practical experience, and make her stand out in the crowd. So, after some research, Evelina chose to study ILSPA’s Legal Secretaries Diploma. Her career has gone from strength to strength since qualifying. She has started her own business and now offers legal services to a range of clients.

We spoke to Evelina about her company, her pro-bono work and her future plans.

What were you doing before studying with ILSPA?