http://whichlawyer.practicallaw.com/which/firmRecommendationsByJurisdiction.do?jurisdictionId=:22473
http://www.chambersandpartners.com/Editorial.aspx?ssid=31589
http://www.legal500.com/c/romania
Thursday, 12 November 2009
Monday, 2 November 2009
Boosting secretarial skills or the necessity of testing legal secretary role
There are no standards or relevant qualifications required for secretarial position. Moreover, there is no specific certification that can be earned by meeting certain experience, educational requirements and finally passing an examination. Testing and certification should be available throughout the bar association or legal education system, as in the case of court clerks (National School of Court Clerks, Scoala Nationala de Grefieri).
Under the lack of any certification, advancements and prominent designations are missing too. The only designation available is the office manager position, actually a unique executive position, where no requirements and credentials are involved too. The lack of standards and clear guidances, drove us to situation where actual receptionist acts as office managers and office managers have difficulties with grammar proficiency and oral communication, notwithstanding organizational and management abilities, excluding by any change the ability to work independently.
Secretaries and administrative assistants generally advance by being promoted to other administrative positions with more responsibilities. Qualified administrative assistants who broaden their knowledge of a company’s operations and enhance their skills may be promoted to senior or executive secretary or administrative assistant, clerical supervisor, or office manager. Secretaries with word processing or data entry experience can advance to jobs as word processing or data entry trainers, supervisors, or managers within their own firms or in a secretarial, word processing, or data entry service bureau. Secretarial and administrative support experience also can lead to jobs such as instructor or sales representative with manufacturers of software or computer equipment. With additional training, many legal secretaries become paralegals.
The professional recognition and qualification of legal secretaries can increase the competitive edge of law firms. It its true, that for the beginning the law firms help to develop the potential of legal secretarial role, but in the end the secretaries job shall optimize the firms’ overall performance. For example, I know partners exceeded by administrative paper work, accounting and billing, who refuse to delegate such to a legal secretary or even to their office manager. In my opinion, this reluctance it is both a question of trusting capabilities and losing control. They will end up working 12 hours per day, not being available to their staff for professional queries and erecting walls around them as being unreachable.
In UK the Institute of Legal Secretaries and Paralegals is offering role certification and specialized training by legal sectors. The efforts of the institute and the necessity of such certifications have been supported by the Solicitors Society and law firms like: Anthony Collins, Anderson Longmore & Higham, Archers Law, Atteys, Birketts, Bond Pearce, Collas Day, Corlett, Crosse & Crosse, Bolton & Co, Daltons, Embertons, Evans & Co, Ford & Warren, Fryer Chandler & Co, Glanvilles, Harvey Ingram, Hatchers, Hibbert Lucas Butter, Holly & Steer, Kimbells, Metson Cross & Co, Mogers, Mundays, Ogier, Ozannes, Neville Jones & Co, Palis & Co, Picton Howell, Pitmans, Purcells, Ramsden, Rose & Dunn, Skinners, Sternberg Reed, Sills & Betteridge, Stapleton Gardner, Townshends, Trowers & Hamlins, Vance Harris, Vincent Sykes & Higham, Webb & Co.
In France the legal secretary position can be occupied only under a double competence certificates, the one certifying the classic educational formation of secretary and BTS degree completed with a competences in the legal domain (DEUST, DUT carrier juridique). The national School of Law and Legal procedure insure the preparation and continuing education for legal secretaries (secretair juridique et secretair davocats) under proper standards.
In US the system is strong and versatile in terms of educational and professional scaled. Here bellow the tracks only for secretaries (paralegals have different system) Testing and certification for proficiency in office skills are available through organizations such as the International Association of Administrative Professionals; National Association of Legal Secretaries (NALS), Inc.; and Legal Secretaries International, Inc. As secretaries and administrative assistants gain experience, they can earn several different designations. Prominent designations include the Certified Professional Secretary (CPS) and the Certified Administrative Professional (CAP), which can be earned by meeting certain experience or educational requirements and passing an examination. Similarly, those with 1 year of experience in the legal field, or who have concluded an approved training course and who want to be certified as a legal support professional, can acquire the Accredited Legal Secretary (ALS) designation through a testing process administered by NALS.
NALS offers two additional designations: Professional Legal Secretary (PLS), considered an advanced certification for legal support professionals, and a designation for proficiency as a paralegal. Legal Secretaries International confers the Certified Legal Secretary Specialist (CLSS) designation in areas such as intellectual property, criminal law, civil litigation, probate, and business law to those who have 5 years of legal experience and pass an examination. In some instances, certain requirements may be waived.
Under the lack of any certification, advancements and prominent designations are missing too. The only designation available is the office manager position, actually a unique executive position, where no requirements and credentials are involved too. The lack of standards and clear guidances, drove us to situation where actual receptionist acts as office managers and office managers have difficulties with grammar proficiency and oral communication, notwithstanding organizational and management abilities, excluding by any change the ability to work independently.
Secretaries and administrative assistants generally advance by being promoted to other administrative positions with more responsibilities. Qualified administrative assistants who broaden their knowledge of a company’s operations and enhance their skills may be promoted to senior or executive secretary or administrative assistant, clerical supervisor, or office manager. Secretaries with word processing or data entry experience can advance to jobs as word processing or data entry trainers, supervisors, or managers within their own firms or in a secretarial, word processing, or data entry service bureau. Secretarial and administrative support experience also can lead to jobs such as instructor or sales representative with manufacturers of software or computer equipment. With additional training, many legal secretaries become paralegals.
The professional recognition and qualification of legal secretaries can increase the competitive edge of law firms. It its true, that for the beginning the law firms help to develop the potential of legal secretarial role, but in the end the secretaries job shall optimize the firms’ overall performance. For example, I know partners exceeded by administrative paper work, accounting and billing, who refuse to delegate such to a legal secretary or even to their office manager. In my opinion, this reluctance it is both a question of trusting capabilities and losing control. They will end up working 12 hours per day, not being available to their staff for professional queries and erecting walls around them as being unreachable.
In UK the Institute of Legal Secretaries and Paralegals is offering role certification and specialized training by legal sectors. The efforts of the institute and the necessity of such certifications have been supported by the Solicitors Society and law firms like: Anthony Collins, Anderson Longmore & Higham, Archers Law, Atteys, Birketts, Bond Pearce, Collas Day, Corlett, Crosse & Crosse, Bolton & Co, Daltons, Embertons, Evans & Co, Ford & Warren, Fryer Chandler & Co, Glanvilles, Harvey Ingram, Hatchers, Hibbert Lucas Butter, Holly & Steer, Kimbells, Metson Cross & Co, Mogers, Mundays, Ogier, Ozannes, Neville Jones & Co, Palis & Co, Picton Howell, Pitmans, Purcells, Ramsden, Rose & Dunn, Skinners, Sternberg Reed, Sills & Betteridge, Stapleton Gardner, Townshends, Trowers & Hamlins, Vance Harris, Vincent Sykes & Higham, Webb & Co.
In France the legal secretary position can be occupied only under a double competence certificates, the one certifying the classic educational formation of secretary and BTS degree completed with a competences in the legal domain (DEUST, DUT carrier juridique). The national School of Law and Legal procedure insure the preparation and continuing education for legal secretaries (secretair juridique et secretair davocats) under proper standards.
In US the system is strong and versatile in terms of educational and professional scaled. Here bellow the tracks only for secretaries (paralegals have different system) Testing and certification for proficiency in office skills are available through organizations such as the International Association of Administrative Professionals; National Association of Legal Secretaries (NALS), Inc.; and Legal Secretaries International, Inc. As secretaries and administrative assistants gain experience, they can earn several different designations. Prominent designations include the Certified Professional Secretary (CPS) and the Certified Administrative Professional (CAP), which can be earned by meeting certain experience or educational requirements and passing an examination. Similarly, those with 1 year of experience in the legal field, or who have concluded an approved training course and who want to be certified as a legal support professional, can acquire the Accredited Legal Secretary (ALS) designation through a testing process administered by NALS.
NALS offers two additional designations: Professional Legal Secretary (PLS), considered an advanced certification for legal support professionals, and a designation for proficiency as a paralegal. Legal Secretaries International confers the Certified Legal Secretary Specialist (CLSS) designation in areas such as intellectual property, criminal law, civil litigation, probate, and business law to those who have 5 years of legal experience and pass an examination. In some instances, certain requirements may be waived.
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