Legal Interviewing Tips

This page contains interviewing and resume tips for obtaining legal jobs in New York City. These topics about interviewing preparation are provided by Legal Employment Agencies a Filcro Legal Staffing Company.

Ten Interview Questions to be Prepared For

    "Tell me about yourself"

    Keep your answers brief, just a couple of minutes. Use your resume as a starting point. Use action verbs sparingly that relate your experience and the position you are applying for. Keep the topics and subject matter business related and professional at all times.

    "What do you know about our law firm?"

    This is one of the most important questions in an interview. It shows if you are serious about the opportunity or not. Do your homework before the interview and spend some time online or at the library or line researching the law firm. The Martindale-Hubbell will help you to find out as much as you can, including practice areas, size, income, reputation, image, management talent, people, skills, history, and philosophy. You want the interviewer to be confident that you know about the law firm but let the interviewer tell you about the company too.

    "Why do you want to work for us?"

    This question can be a rough one if you are not prepared. Try and focus on what you can do for the law firm; the practice group or the individual attorney. If your strength is litigation, corporate law or real estate, make sure you talk about any similarities to your last position to the one you are applying for. 

    Stay away from salary, benefits and bonuses here.  Your answer should be about what you can do for the firm.  Mature people are able to express a desire to work for a firm in an unselfish manner without the need for immediate gratification.   

    "What would you do for us? What can you do for us that someone else can't?"

    Give examples of past experience that show you've had success in areas similar to those of the prospective law firm. Keep everything positive and do not say anything negative about your previous employer, the law firm, a coworker or attorney. Always be complimentary and others will respect you for it.  Be humble but talk about your skills and work ethic in an honest manner it will come across in the interview.  Never exaggerate or embellish on your skills or experience.

    "What about this job offered do you find the most attractive?"

    Talk about what you find attractive in terms of how it relates to your prior professional experience as well as any growth that the job offers.  Everyone wants to be happy in their new job and an employer wants people who are genuinely enthusiastic about the work and the firm.  You want to start your new job on a positive note as does the new law firm.  If you are truly and honestly interested in the job let them know.  The truth always works.

    "Why should we hire you?"

    The law firm should hire you because of your legal knowledge, abilities, legal experience and skills. Corporate cultures within a law firms are all unique. Look for similarities that both you and the interviewer can relate to.  Some law firms have outstanding reputations for the way they treat their employees and the type of work environment they provide.  If you are interviewing with a top firm and are aware of their reputation, let them know. It’s a privilege to work for the top law firms.  Getting into the best firms requires a knowledge of what these firms so special.

    "What do you look for in a job?"

    An opportunity to utilize your skills, contribute to the law firm and to be recognized. Talking about salary, benefits and or vacation here is not suggested. Everyone want to be recognized for their work and dedication. Let the employer know that you don’t need compliments every time you perform a task but if you perform well consistently you like to know it’s appreciated.

    "Give me your definition of the position for which you are being interviewed."

    Keep it brief. Use a definition that lists actions and expected results. Legal secretaries, paralegals and other legal professionals have general duties that can be articulated very easily.  Think of how you’ll perform as a team member and independently.

    "How long would it take you to make a meaningful contribution to our company?"

    Not very long -- you and the employer expect only a brief grace period or adjustment to the firm and then you should be off and running. The firm is hiring you because they have a need and you have the skills and experience.  Knowing that you can perform as expected in a reasonable amount of time is important.

    "How long do you plan to stay in your next job?"

    As with any relationship this is determined by both parties. As long as you can contribute to the firm, achieve your duties and be respected for those contributions the employee and employer will greatly benefit form the relationship.

    If you have a lot of movement is your work experience this topic will be explored in detail.

    Resume Do’s

  • Submit your resume on standard 81/2 by 11 letter size, white paper.
  • Maintain space between paragraphs, and allow for adequate margins.
    Utilize conventional English. Stay away from complex phraseology, slang and abundant multi-syllable word usage.
  • Keep your paragraphs short and concise.
  • Check and check again to assure that your resume, cover letter or e-mail enclosures are error-free. 
  • Keep you resume within context of the company and job you are applying for.
  • List a few achievements at each one of your jobs and be prepared to discuss them in detail. 
  • Devote the majority of your resume to the most relevant job related to the position you are applying for.
  • List memberships in industry organizations if related the company and the position. 
  • Let those supplied as references know who might be calling, the position(s) you are applying for and a realistic timeframe to expect the calls. 
  • Each cover letter must be specific to the employer and position you are applying for.
  • Most human resource professionals and senior level executives will have specific questions based on statements on your resume.  Be prepared to justify and expand on everything.

Resume Don’ts

  • Keep negative statements to a minimum no matter what the circumstances in your last position.  Speaking negatively about previous employers or employees is not positive for you and will hamper your candidacy. Be diplomatic.
  • Minimize personal references to sports, gym memberships, knitting and pottery
  • Never place you social security number, or personal philosophies about intergalactic travel on your resume. Your resume once submitted is in the public domain and secure or confidential information should be saved for a confidential application of employment or 3rd party reference check.  
  • Do not supply or offer references on your resume.  The employer if interested will ask for them.  
  • Never submit a resume without checking the properties tab in Microsoft Word or PDF documents.
  • Do not discuss prospective employment on your current company employer’s time.  It’s not ethical.
  • Your height, weight and physical appearance should not be on your resume.
  • Never place a job objective on a resume not targeted to that job or company. 
  • Verbs like sparked, accelerated, and streamlined are fluff.  Everyone knows it and so should you.
  • Do not under any circumstance place you salary on your resume. Save it for the interview, application of employment or cover letter.

Understand Legal Jobs in Law Firms Before you Apply or Interview

We advise legal secretarial, legal word processing and paralegal candidates seeking legal jobs in New York City law firms to examine real legal jobs to get a sense of perspective.

Legal Secretaries - Paralegals - Records - Billing - Secretarial Supervisors - Receptionists - Filcro - Legal Jobs - TV - Law Firm People
 
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