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When it comes to hiring a virtual paralegal, it’s important to keep several criteria in mind. After all, the paralegal will be fulfilling a vital role in the operation of your firm, so you want to be sure that your criteria for a skillful and knowledgeable paralegal are met. Additionally, you will want to consider the following when engaged in the process of hiring a virtual paralegal.
Check Credibility
As with traditional hiring, it’s important that you vet the credibility of any potential virtual paralegal that you hire – or make sure that they’re employed by a trustworthy agency. You want to be sure that the virtual paralegal you hire has a professional certificate and that their years of experience and background check out.
Given the nature of legal work, you want to be sure that you’re employing a trustworthy individual who will abide by your data protection protocols and regulations. This is why it’s so important that you make sure that any virtual paralegal you hire is accredited.
Ensure Data Protection
Given that you will be sharing confidential and personal information with your virtual paralegal on the Internet, you want to be certain that both you and your virtual paralegal are taking all the necessary precautions. Ensure that you’re utilizing effective cybersecurity measures and protocols and that your virtual paralegal is adhering to the best practices to ensure the security of the data shared with them.
Remember: the cause of most data breaches is employee negligence. You want to be absolutely certain that both you and your paralegal are adhering to the highest security standards to ensure the safety of client and firm information.
Do Not Misclassify Independent Contractors
When working with independent contractors, it’s important that you don’t get them mixed up with your in-house, full-time or part-time employees. Make sure that the paperwork is filed correctly to ensure that neither you or your virtual paralegal meet with an unexpected surprise come tax time.
Virtual paralegals bring many benefits to the table when it comes to their role in assisting lawyers. The primary benefits are the time-saved and the cost of employing one. It’s important to keep in mind the above criteria when you’re looking at hiring a virtual paralegal to complete your team. Here at LevLegal, our paralegals are the best in their fields, with years of experience in the practice of law. Contact us now for a consultation on how we can best help meet your firm’s needs.