In-house paralegal uses his talent for technology with ‘Smitty’s Notes’
Jeffrey L. Smith is a litigation paralegal with Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc. in Greensboro, N.C. His responsibilities include litigation support and handling IT issues for the legal department. Smith is a member of the Paralegal Division of the N.C. Bar Association and earned its Pro Bono Award in 2005.
Smith is also the creator and writer of Smitty’s Notes, an e-mail community newsletter that is published twice a month. He also created a website, www.smittysnotes.com, which focuses on news and happenings in the Winston-Salem, N.C., area.
CPN: How long have you been a paralegal?
Smith: Twenty-three years – 10 years in private practice, 13 years working in an in-house legal department.
CPN: What drew you into the career?
Smith: By accident. I was waiting for a management job at the law firm I was hired to open when it expanded. When the firm decided not to go in that direction, they offered me a paralegal position. I graduated from Elon University with a major in public administration. This worked out great because I dealt with a lot of government agencies in my paralegal role and understood the bureaucracy.
CPN: What paralegal organizations – national, state or local – are you member of and what positions do you hold in them?
Smith: I’m a member of the Paralegal Division of the N.C. Bar Association. I was on the board of the Paralegal Division from 2003-2005, served as chair of the Pro Bono Committee from 2004-2005 and received the Paralegal Division’s Pro Bono Award in 2005.
CPN: When you talk with other paralegals, what are the main concerns or issues they face on a daily basis?
Smith: I would say it’s different working in-house. Mostly, the concerns involve dealing with company issues and developing and maintaining good relations with your “client,” who is also your work colleague. The biggest challenge is balancing deadlines driven by litigation discovery and those with your client who also has work challenges of their own. In the end, it all works out.
CPN: If you could name one thing that would most benefit the paralegal profession, what would it be?
Smith: I think the fact that the NCBA, the N.C. State Bar and the attorneys in the state embraced the idea of paralegal certification was a tremendous benefit. It gave paralegals a goal to reach for and raised the bar of professionalism for paralegals. I wish the South Carolina attorneys would see this as a win-win situation for the legal
profession.
CPN: If you could snap your fingers and create the perfect CLE, what would it be and why?
Smith: How to get attorneys to use and embrace legal technology tools. If attorneys better understood the benefits of technology, they would actually use it more (such as Summation in private practice or matter management and contract management software in an in-house environment). If they used these tools more often than relying on their paralegal staff, attorneys could see more benefits in their use with clients.
CPN: When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Smith: An architect. When my father explained how much math was involved, I quickly gave that idea up. Math was my least favorite subject in high school.
CPN: What do you wish you knew when you were getting started in the profession that you know now?
Smith: Attorneys aren’t managers. They are trained to practice law. That’s when a good paralegal steps in.
CPN: And what part of your job could you do without?
Smith: Discovery deadlines, which are fast and furious.
CPN: What one thing, either personally or professionally, are you most proud of?
Smith: Professionally, doing three separate legal software integrations (matter management, contract management and patents) during my career with Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc. Personally, creating Smitty’s Notes, an e-mail newsletter with over 10,000 subscribers and my website, SmittysNotes.com, that has fostered social capital building in Winston-Salem, N.C.
CPN: Where would we find you on the weekends?
Smith: Dinner with friends. I love the art of great food and good
conversation.
