The role of a Paralegal in a Law Office

Paralegals play an integral part of working in law offices. Law is a very broad subject and its components include criminal, business, entertainment, immigration, and copyright law. This publication would be based on immigration.

Immigration is on the most talked topic in America with the current climate the country is in at the moment Law offices are very busy helping with current legal and illegal immigrants. With busy schedules with law offices, attorneys are always on the run and the workload is very hectic. That is where paralegals come in, they help with the day to day activities in the law office.

Andre E. Kevin who works as a paralegal in Southern California shares his experience working with clients on behalf of the attorneys he works with. Before he became a paralegal, he had worked as a Legal Business affairs assistant in the entertainment industry. “After years of working in entertainment and getting to learn more about legal matters I was intrigued and wanted to be involved in immigration because my stepdad was an immigrant, said Mr. Kevin.”

Before transition, he was attending a paralegal program at the University State of California and attended their Immigration Clinics. Like most paralegal positions, becoming a paralegal in immigration law absolutely requires an extreme degree of organization and attention to detail. All lawyers require paralegals who can both aid with routine matters of scheduling and paperwork and also provide input on legal strategy and information about case law.

When it comes to immigration there is room in the field for practices that specialize in international human rights or incorporate employment. Immigration paralegals are found working for tiny non-profit legal aid clinics, or big international law firms, and at every type of practice and agency in between. This helps them gain more experience and exposure from different immigrants.

These immigrants come from various parts of the world and each countries process of coming to America is different, depending on the embassy. “Learning how my stepdad struggled to get his naturalization. I wanted to help other people with their immigration process because it is not an easy one, said Andre.”

Kevin’s paralegal experience has made him learn that Immigration law deals with individuals who are seeking temporary or permanent legal status in the United States. And establishes eligibility requirements for entry, duration periods for residence, and conditions for departure. These laws further specify how individuals can apply for residence, what documents they must produce, and processes they must follow to support their application, and how long they must wait to be approved for it.

 

ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE “ESL”

Education is known to be one of the best things one can give to themselves. For most immigrants, it is another way of leaving their home countries to seek a better life. American Education is one of the best around the world and some of these immigrants take advantage of it. Since America’s first language is English all teachings are done in that.

 

Immigrants who come from non-English speaking countries like  China, Puerto Rico and France sometimes face a lot of challenges because of the language barrier. Dr. Bertha Jones an English Professor at San Jacinto Community College has had experiences teaching such foreign students in a class she teaches titled English as a Second Language (ESL).

 

Dr. Jones has been teaching the class for over 20 years at San Jacinto Community College, where she first started teaching. She further went to explain how she got into that. Her grandparents were Spanish speaking immigrants from Costa Rica they hardly spoke English.  At a tender age, she recalls being the one translating for them whenever they came to visit. Though her parents were also immigrants they had little education on how to communicate with people in English.

 

She expressed how excited she was to teach her first English class when she got a job offer after college. “I could not hide the joy after that phone call ended. I called my parents right away for them to know I had been offered a teaching position 2 weeks after graduating from college, said Dr. Jones.”

 

ESL is a beginner’s class that tutors people with little to none English background. After one is done taking and passing this class, they are then given the opportunity to go through 3 various stages in the English program. The stages are as follows; beginners, Intermediary and Advance (College English). Each of these levels prepares students for an easy transition into being comfortable reading and writing in English.

 

With her experience in teaching English, she has taught a lot of foreign students and added that immigrants from different non-English speaking countries are her favorites. She also explained further why teaching immigrants’ students are her favorite part. “Teaching foreign students is easy and not a challenge because they only take English classes as a requirement. Unlike students who come from non-English speaking countries, DR. Jones said.” Those students from non-English speaking countries must master a way of making English their primary language especially because they would like to live and work in the U.S. Foreign students do not have to worry about that part because most of them do not plan to stay in the States after school.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME

Living away from home can be incredibly challenging. People leave their home countries for several reasons, it could be for school, better life, work, or any important reason. One thing for sure is home would always be home to everyone. Living in Another Country can pose a lot of challenges to an individual and in this story, we get to learn and hear from different people on what brought them to the United States.

Kofi Boakye is an immigrant who migrated from Ghana when he was nineteen. He moved to the States with his other siblings including his mom. His dad had lived in New York for over 15 years and worked in the medical field as a Certified Nursing Assistant. Kofi is twenty- five now and just graduated with his master’s in public health from New York University. He credits his drive to his home country of Ghana where he was born and raised until he moved the United States. “I have always wanted to do something that would give me the opportunity to go back home and help my community, Kofi said.”

Being an immigrant comes with its own challenges and Daily Challenges Immigrant face can range from language, culture, and food. Kofi expressed how easy it was for home when he used to live in his home country Ghana. Things were quite easy for him because it was his comfort zone. “Back home I had easy access to a lot of things and it was less stressful, also we were all about family and sharing those moments together, Kofi said.”

• Photo Credit Home Away From Home.ca

The experience of living in the States can be incredibly challenging for a lot of people. The US has its own culture and its way of life and sometimes it’s too much for people to handle Society’s self-destructive addiction to faster living in the United States. Kofi expressed his feelings about living in the US and he explained he made the move here because his Dad had sacrificed a lot to have them come here for a better education. “If I had my own way I would have stayed in Ghana, living in the States has been extremely challenging for me and sometimes I wished I was back home, Kofi said.”