EDUCATION

 

ROOSEVELT UNIVERSITY, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Paralegal Certification conferred January 2005

•                   Legal Research & Writing Honors

 

ILLINOIS STATE UNIVERSITY, NORMAL, ILLINOIS

Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Political Science conferred May 2003

§ National Dean's List

§ Internship, American Hospitality Academy, Crown Reef Resort, Myrtle Beach, S.C., Summer 2002

 

WORK EXPERIENCE (10 YEARS)

 

BEACON HILL and ROBERT HALF INTERNATIONAL, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Contract Litigation Paralegal October 2010 to Present

 

-        Nicolaides Fink Thorpe Michaelides Sullivan LLP

§       Assist attorneys in all aspects of legal case preparation and file management including drafting routine to complex documents and collection of information relevant to cases. Categorize and interpret data, responses and records produced by opposing counsel

§       Conduct moderate to complex legal research and analyze law sources such as statutes, recorded judicial decisions, legal articles, treaties, constitutions and legal codes to prepare legal documents such as briefs, pleadings, appeals, etc. for use by attorney

§       Draft, compile and prepare discovery responses. Prepare exhibits and other demonstrative evidence for use at deposition and trial

 

-        Schiller DuCanto and Fleck, Jackson Lewis

§       Draft routine litigation documents. Manage multiple cases from start to trial/appeal. Manage and organize documents collected and produced during discovery. Create and maintain electronic databases of discovery documents produced. Perform electronic document review using e-discovery review tools and document review databases including Summation, Concordance and Relativity. Prepare for depositions including gathering and organizing exhibits and preparing witness binders. Assist in trial preparation including organizing pretrial orders, exhibits and witness lists and organizing files and other supporting documents

§       Draft and prepare federal and state court pleadings, client correspondence and specific legal memorandum. Conduct legal research using LEXIS and WESTLAW as well as PACER docket searches. Update and maintain case docket. Perform legal research, writing and case management. Draft pleadings, motions, notices and other legal documents including subpoenas and memoranda of legal analysis. Prepared state and federal court e-filings using PACER

§         Support attorneys in cite-checking and preparing legal opinions in Bluebook format. Prepare questions and/or responses for discovery, document review, indexing and analyzing documents; Maintain trial calendars, and scheduling discoveries and meetings with opposing counsel

 

-        BMO Harris Bank, Sears Holding Company, AON Corporation

§    Perform core activities related to third party subpoenas and first party litigation discovery; Review scope of discovery requests and third party subpoenas; Articulate appropriate written objections and identify all sources of responsive records; Conduct legal review of records for responsiveness and privilege/work product objections; Interface with record custodians, issuing attorneys and internal counsel

 

-        Rakoczy Molino Mazzochi Siwik LLP, KATTEN MUCHIN, KIRKLAND AND ELLIS

§    Performed electronic document review using e-discovery review tools and document review databases including Summation, Concordance and Relativity.

§    Reviewed and coded documents for privilege and relevance. Also performed other review tasks including tagging, sorting, redacting etc.

 

GREENE AND LETTS, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Litigation Paralegal, December 2008-March 2010

§ Provided support to Employment and Tort Law Groups in legal research, writing and case management; drafted pleadings, motions, notices and other legal documents including subpoenas and memoranda of legal analysis; performed online court filings with the Northern District of Illinois and the Circuit Court of Cook County

§ Managed discovery process for the Employment and Tort Law Groups including drafting interrogatories, requests for production of documents, requests for admissions and scheduling depositions; Conducted document review and production using e-discovery review tools and document databases including Summation and Concordance; deposition preparation, analysis and abstraction: Assisted in trial preparation

§ Managed Federal and Local Government contract procurement; identified contracting opportunities for legal services and drafted various bid proposals including Requests for Proposal (RFP), Requests for Information (RFI) and Requests for Qualifications (RFQ)

 

COOK COUNTY STATE'S ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT DIVISION, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Law Clerk, Post Decree Division, May 2007- May 2008

§ Drafted complaints, petitions and motions on behalf of the Department of Health and Family Services for the purpose of collecting past due child support

§ Assisted Supervising Assistant State's Attorneys in writing court orders, held conferences with clients prior to court proceedings and conducted hearings

 

 

OWENS & ROBINSON, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Paralegal, October 2006-October 2007

§ Conducted legal research and drafted legal documents including motions, petitions and complaints for family, personal injury, civil, criminal, real estate and employment law matters

§ Performed all secretarial and receptionist duties including drafting correspondence, maintaining client files and billing

 

JUDGE R. MORGAN HAMILTON, DOMESTIC RELATIONS DIVISION, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Law Clerk, Domestic Relations Division, May - August 2006

§ Prepared motions and court orders for pro se litigants

§ Researched case law on family law matters including, but not limited to, the Homestead Act and Child Support Enforcement

§ Observed court proceedings including Settlement Conferences, Status and Contempt Hearings and Prove Ups

 

MAYER BROWN ROWE & MAW, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Paralegal/ Intellectual Property Project Clerk, January - August 2005

§ Performed data entry of monthly invoices and annuity payments foreign IP associates and vendors

§ Updated patent and trademark statuses with the United States Patent and Trademark Office

 

LAW OFFICE OF DAVID M. STERNFIELD, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

Paralegal, August 2004 - January 2005

§ Drafted family law motions, notices, complaints, summonses, and petitions, and assisted in drafting legal memoranda, wills and settlement agreements to be filed with the Circuit Court of Cook County

§ Participated in trial preparation and estate closings

 

LEGAL & MULTIMEDIA SOFTWARE

 

Concordance; Summation; Relativity; eZReview; Trial Director; Legal Matter Management System; LexisNexis/Westlaw; Pro and Adobe Premier; Photoshop; Microsoft Office Suites including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook