Stable, decent first job right out of college!
Pros
- The paralegal work is stable and consistent (immigration cases are not as complex as some other practice areas), which means it's relatively intuitive to learn even if you don't have a wealth of training here. I've really enjoyed learning from my peers in this respect. - Getting to do legal strategy directly with attorneys, and having a great deal of responsibility/ownership over your own cases - Very understanding management/HR when it comes to taking time off, adjusting work logistics, etc. There is quite a lot of PTO (22 days a year) and the HR manager is very kind and understanding. Thanks to the hardworking Facilities team, there are a number of nice firmwide events for bonding and camaraderie, including a soft serve truck to celebrate the end of CAP season! - They hire fresh college grads with little to no immigration/legal experience, which makes for a solid "stepping-stone" if you just want to gain some legal experience but can't bring "2-3 years of experience" to the table for even an entry-level legal assistant job at a big company/BigLaw!
Cons
- Training is sort of "all over the place," but they have so many paralegals coming through all the time that there is sort of a framework to make sure everyone is covered as they're learning the ropes - Revolving door -- people don't stay long! - Most attorneys are very nice, engaged, and thoughtful, but a few are unapproachable, inattentive, slow to review important documents, and patronizing - This has not personally been my experience, but someone on my team (not a paralegal) was fired out of the blue for reasons that could've been brought up to him with better warning/training ahead of time, so I think the management structure can be quite flawed here if you are underperforming but don't know it. - This is more of a neutral note, but the pay is hourly so you have to clock in and out, including for lunch. The pay is not amazing, especially if you are trying to be financially independent in the Bay Area.