A virtual assistant is a person that is hired to work remotely on administrative, creative or technical tasks. You may be asking yourself why you, a lawyer, needs a virtual assistant when you have an office full of paralegals and administrators. The answer is simple: an E-Typist virtual assistant is dedicated solely to the tasks YOU give them.
Unlike full-time employees, a virtual legal assistant operates as a freelance team member. The term virtual assistant originated in the 1990s when technical advancements made working from home a possibility. Virtual assistant is often shortened to VA. Typically virtual assistants do work from home. And while they are dedicated to meeting your needs, you’re likely not the only client they have.
Gone are the days where you needed a secretary within earshot of your office. There’s a number of clerical tasks that can be executed effectively and efficiently miles apart. Virtual assistants can bring a range of skills to the table. Think of a virtual assistants as support staff. They can manage your calendar by scheduling appointments.
So now that we’ve tackled what is a virtual assistant, it’s time to get a little more granular. Virtual assistants can have specializations. You wouldn’t expect a PR or marketing virtual assistant to have no experience working in the field. Virtual legal assistants are no different.
You should expect that your virtual legal assistant has legal experience. Whether it be in the courtroom or in the office, your depositions should not be the first ones they’re seeing. It’s possible that there will be a learning curve at the beginning of working with a virtual legal assistant but you shouldn’t be spending time explaining basic legal concepts to them.
For example, all of our virtual legal assistants have experience working with lawyers in some capacity before joining our team. They start with E-Typist doing legal transcription. This starting point ensures that they are familiar with technical terms in the industry and that they can execute quality work.
Since virtual assistants can work from anywhere, it’s not uncommon to find a virtual assistant who works abroad. While there’s nothing wrong with working with an international VA, E-Typist employs US-based virtual legal assistants.
A virtual assistant can transform your business. We invite you to learn more about E-Typist’s virtual legal assistant services!