by Richard Prior
Staff Writer
Attorneys’ continued reliance on paralegals will only increase if firms are to remain competitive in the future, the Northeast Florida Paralegal Association heard Thursday.
The legal climate and clients’ requests have made paralegals an essential part of the way most firms practice law today, said Jim Moseley, president of The Jacksonville Bar Association.
“When I started practicing in the late 1980s, paralegals were used, but not to the extent they’re used now, “ he said. “It is important now, more than ever, to involve our paralegals in the process.
“Those who do not use a paralegal in the future will probably have difficulty remaining competitive in the market because so many clients require some activity by a paralegal on many items.”
Moseley was the featured speaker at the association’s luncheon and meeting at The River Club.
It is important for attorneys to work well with paralegals, because they are “colleagues in the Bar,” Moseley said. “We serve a very important purpose in our community because our legal system is the bedrock of our society.
“Everything we do reflects upon that.”
Moseley said he wanted to take the opportunity to recognize his own firm’s paralegals — Veronica Barnes and Patye Davis — and his legal assistant, Nadine Powell.
“Like all good paralegals and legal assistants,” he said, “they keep us straight. Communication is very important because you all help us do what we do, and we do likewise for you.”
Before Moseley’s speech, Bob Spohrer, of Spohrer Wilner Maxwell & Matthews, was presented a special award for his ongoing work with the association.
Largely because of increased demands on attorneys’ time and technological evolution, he said, firms rely much more on paralegals than they did when the profession surfaced in the mid-1960s.
Attorneys need paralegals to do much more than answer phones and transcribe documents, he said.
“You’re part of our team,” said Spohrer. “We could not represent our clients nearly as well without the assistance of paralegals in our office.”
In addition to working on legal matters, paralegals have joined with attorneys on projects to benefit children during holidays, Moseley said.
“That is very important because it says to our community that our bar and our paralegals are concerned about the system of justice, but we’re also about service to our community,” he said. “That is extremely important.
“While people come to us with their problems, and they want us to take care of them, we are respected, and we need to be respected for our community service.”
The JBA provides general advice to the I.M. Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless, assists with JaxReads and is putting together a program on the Literacy Speakers Bureau.
Volunteers with the bureau will speak with community and civic groups about the importance of literacy and discuss ways to improve it, he said.
“There’s a direct correlation between illiteracy and juvenile delinquency,” said Moseley, “and that’s where our community problems and our legal society join together.”
A good paralegal can help attorneys by drafting documents and complaints, writing letters, interviewing clients, locating witnesses and preparing exhibits.
“The client also may benefit from the activity of a paralegal,” said Moseley. “The cost is usually lower, and it enables us to act efficiently.
“As long as they’re not holding themselves out to be lawyers, paralegals play a very important role. You are very important in our administration of justice.”
The evolution of the paralegal’s role continues to change as their knowledge and changing technology provide new tools.
“The individual lawyers who make up our legal system need to look at how we can improve the system and how we can be involved,” said Moseley. “That includes paralegals and legal assistants because we’re all an important part of our community.
“The bedrock of our country has always been the rule of law. No matter what we do, everything we do has something to do with the rule of law.”