Every week, we carefully take time to sort out our household waste and put it in the recycling bins. We believe we’re doing our bit for the environment and we don’t give it another thought after it is taken away. We trust that it is going to be recycled.

After a recent investigation performed by Greenpeace, it was discovered that over half of our plastic waste is being shipped to countries like Turkey to be disposed of. Rather than being recycled, it is often dumped or burned on the roadside. Some of it even ends up in waterways and floats into the ocean. This has a very harmful effect on wildlife, sea life and people. Locals have reported serious health issues and haven’t been able to breathe properly due to intoxicating fumes.

As an administrative professional, you understand just how much structure and organisation come into play on a daily basis. You probably have multiple systems and procedures that allow you to create order and inspire productivity. But with so many people and processes to manage, even the best of us can get overwhelmed when we look at our files, binders and calendars.

One of the easiest ways to add structure and organisation to your workspace, files and more is to use colour-coding. According to research by neuroscientists, our brains are hard-wired to process colour before virtually anything else, improving comprehension and helping us process information more quickly, as well as retaining it longer.

There are various drivers forcing law firms to embrace a more diverse workforce and to attract, promote and retain talent from all backgrounds, regardless of gender, gender identity, race, ethnicity, sexuality, religion, age and socio-economic class (to name but a few).

Not only is the pressure on to have employees who reflect the society in which we live, but there is an increasing recognition that diversity leads to better decision making and increased profitability.

What are companies doing?

Some clients now require law firms to attest to their Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) policies and progress in pitches.

Our partner, Simply Law, recently caught up with Samantha Evans, a Legal Assistant who kindly shared what she does on an average day at work, her hopes for the future and her advice for those looking to join the legal profession.

Career path

At college, I chose to study law as one of my subjects, as I had a general interest from watching crime dramas on the television, reading John Grisham’s books, and obviously, Elle Woods in Legally Blonde! I thoroughly enjoyed the course and knew it was something I wanted to study at university. In September 2018 I started my Law Degree (LLB) at the University of Worcester.

Leading legal jobs board TotallyLegal has just published its annual Audience Insight Report. Download your copy today to discover more about your profession and benchmark your earnings as a Legal Secretary or PA.

In early 2021, we asked more than 800 legal professionals to disclose the details of their daily working lives and tell us how their careers had been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. With Administrators and Paralegals working alongside Solicitors, In-House Counsel and, of course, Legal Secretaries and PAs, responses revealed an audience representative of the full legal profession.

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

Legal Assistant/Legal Secretary – Nicholson Martin Legge & Miller

Location: Houghton le Spring

Salary: Competitive

The position of a Legal Assistant to one of the firm’s Partners has become available at the office based in Houghton le Spring.

The areas of law that you would gain experience in are family law, private client and conveyancing. This would be an ideal opportunity for someone with secretarial experience in a legal setting.  You would maintain client files including the production of correspondence and enclosures as well as dealing directly with client queries.

View the full job description here:           

Not everyone has heard of the term “imposter syndrome”, but the chances are that, at some point in your career, you have experienced it. It’s the feeling that you don’t deserve the position you are in, that the faith others have in you to do a good job is unsubstantiated or that any success you have is mere luck.

Imposter syndrome can be summed up as believing you are not as competent as others perceive you to be.

Everybody knows that one of the first things you need to do when you are looking for work is to write a professional, accurate and impressive CV. However, a CV is only half of the application. It does not matter how good your CV is if you do not include an equally impressive covering letter. The role of the covering letter is to entice the recruiter to go on and read your CV. In situations where recruiters are inundated with applications, a bad covering letter – or worse yet, no covering letter at all – could very well be the reason why your CV ends up in the rejected pile.

The March 2021 edition of our journal included the exciting announcement that our partner, Simply Law, was undergoing the biggest transformation in its 18-year history. It is with great pleasure that we can now tell you the next phase of this relaunch is live. As well as having a brand-new look, the site is jam-packed with new and exciting features as well as old favourites that have been updated or revamped – all perfectly designed to make your job search a whole lot easier. 

Since the Covid-19 lockdowns, many employees across the UK have become accustomed to remote working – one of the most popular forms of flexible working arrangements offered by employers. However, with offices and workplaces beginning to open back up, flexible working arrangements will not necessarily remain in place in the long term. This could create some problems down the line, with employees being dissatisfied at losing the flexibility they once had and employers having to deal with unhappy staff members.

In this blog, we will provide all the advice and information you need if you are thinking of making a request for a flexible working arrangement, and explain to you your legal rights if you decide to go down this route.

What do we mean by “flexible working”?