Why Did I Become a Paralegal?

Recently, a question was posed to me, “Why did you become a paralegal?” Honestly, it isn’t a hard question for me to answer.

After graduating high school in 1986, I saw a program called Paralegal Studies listed among the various programs and majors provided by the college I’d chosen to attend, Nebraska Wesleyan University. However it was a two year program and me, being the naive, country kid with no clue, didn’t think a two year degree was as prestigious as a four year degree. Thus, I chose a different path to follow, ended up with a BA in English, and spent 10 years working in contract food service. Little did I know 10-plus years later I would come full circle and realize that I really, really liked the field of law, but was not interested in being an attorney. I returned to Nebraska Wesleyan and entered the Paralegal Studies program, which by then was offered as either an Associates or a Bachelor’s degree. I chose to pursue the Bachelor’s credits and added Paralegal Studies as a second to my already existing degree.

I was lucky enough to obtain my current position at the Knudsen Law Firm while I was finishing up my studies for a Paralegal and have now been here 10 years. I love digging into paper and sorting it out. I love working for our clients, no matter which side they are on. I love going to my attorneys with something, whether good or bad, and telling them they might want to check it out. As a Paralegal at Knudsen Law Firm, I’ve been challenged to think outside of the box and develop new and better ways to deal with large amounts of documents and presenting those documents in discovery and eventually at trial. I wouldn’t trade what I do for anything.