Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey

Tara
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Hosted by Alberta paralegal Tara Edwards, Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey shares honest conversations about paralegal careers, legal support roles, mentorship, and the people who make the legal system work. 

  1. Sep 28

    Episode 24: Interview with Veronica (Vera) McGuire

    Send us Fan Mail Interview with Veronica (Vera) McGuire, retired Ontario Provincial Prosecutor  What professional skills are you developing today that will still serve you five or ten years from now? In this episode of Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey, I sit down with Veronica (Vera) McGuire, a former Ontario Provincial Prosecutor and instructor whose career has taken her through the courtroom, prosecution, teaching, mediation, and professional leadership. Vera shares lessons from her career and why she believes negotiation and mediation are some of the most valuable skills a paralegal can develop. We also talk about mentorship, owning your mistakes, work-life balance, and the importance of developing skills that will continue to serve you wherever your legal career takes you. ❓ Reflection Question: What professional skills am I developing today that will still serve me five or ten years from now? 🎧 Listen now and join the conversation. 📍 Connect with me on LinkedIn and let me know your biggest takeaway from today's episode.  ⭐ If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast, leave a review, and share it with another legal assistant or paralegal who could benefit from the conversation.  About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033

  2. Sep 12

    Episode 23: I Made a Major Mistake. Now What?

    Send us Fan Mail Episode 23: I Made a Major Mistake. Now What? What happens when you make a mistake at work that is serious enough to make you question everything you know about yourself? Last week, I made a major mistake at work. I owned it. I apologized. My bosses reminded me that I am human and that mistakes happen. But that did not stop me from going home, replaying it over and over again, feeling physically sick, emotionally eating, and asking myself: Am I actually as good at this job as I thought I was? Can people trust me? Can I even trust myself? In this episode of Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey, I am having an honest conversation about what happens after the mistake is made—when accountability starts turning into self-punishment and one bad moment begins to feel like a judgment on your entire career. In this episode, I explore: ⚖️ Why making a serious mistake can shake your professional confidence 🧠 The difference between having high standards and expecting perfection from yourself 💼 Why experience can make the thought “I should have known better” even harder to deal with ❤️ How to take accountability without allowing one mistake to destroy your professional self-worth ❓I also ask an important reflection question: “When I make a mistake at work, what do I immediately believe that mistake says about me?” If you have ever gone home after getting something wrong and allowed that one moment to make you question your competence, your experience, or your worth as a professional, this episode is for you. 🎧 Listen now and join the conversation. 📍 Connect with me on LinkedIn and let me know your biggest takeaway from today's episode. ⭐ If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast, leave a review, and share it with another legal assistant or paralegal who could benefit from the conversation. About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033  About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033

  3. Aug 31

    Episode 22: You Didn't Get Here By Accident

    Send us Fan Mail Episode 22 | You Didn't Get Here By Accident Have you ever looked at the next step in your legal career and wondered, "Am I really ready for this?" In this episode of Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey, I reflect on a powerful piece of advice from my conversation with Kristine Jeffels, instructor at Bow Valley College and mentor with the Alberta Association of Professional Paralegals: "You didn't survive what you have because you don't know what you're doing." That sentence stayed with me, and it got me thinking about how often we overlook the experience and skills we've built throughout our careers. In this episode, I explore: ⚖️ Why we can recognize competence in everyone except ourselves 💼 How everyday experiences in a law office build professional skills and judgment 🧠 The difference between learning what to do and understanding why we do it 📚 How questions, mistakes, difficult files, and problem-solving become part of our professional education 🚀 Why we don't have to know everything before we're ready to take on something new 💡 How experience builds competence and competence builds confidence I also share five things I believe our experience has already taught us and a simple exercise to help you look back at the challenges you've overcome and recognize the skills you've developed along the way. If you've ever questioned whether you're ready for your next opportunity, this episode will remind you that the experience you've already gained may be exactly what prepares you for it.🎧 Listen now and join the conversation. 📍 Connect with me on LinkedIn and let me know your biggest takeaway from today's episode. ⭐ If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast, leave a review, and share it with another legal assistant or paralegal who could benefit from the conversation. About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033  About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033

  4. Aug 9

    Behind the Case Files: Can we Act | Understanding Conflict Checks

    Send us Fan Mail  🎙️ Behind the Case Files - Episode 1 | Can We Act? Understanding Conflict Checks  Why does a law office complete a conflict check before opening a file? And what does client intake have to do with it? Before a lawyer can answer a prospective client's question — "Can you help me?" — the office first has to answer its own: Can we act? In this first episode of Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey – Behind the Case Files, Tara Edwards takes you inside the practical side of conflict checks, client intake, and professional responsibility. This episode is designed for legal assistants, paralegals and students who want to understand not just what we do, but why we do it. 📂 Inside this episode We'll take a practical look at: 🔹 Why conflict checks are more than an administrative task 🔹 Why a thorough client intake is the foundation of an effective conflict check 🔹 Why previous, maiden, or former names matter 🔹 Why identifying the correct legal entity matters when the client is a corporation 🔹 Why opposing parties, related individuals, and related companies may need to be identified 🔹 What happens when a potential conflict appears in the firm's system 🔹 What the legal assistant or paralegal's role is when a potential conflict is identified 🔹 Why the lawyer—not the legal support professional—makes the professional decision about whether the firm can act 🔹 Why conflict management doesn't necessarily end when the file is opened 🔹 What Canadian professional rules, case law, and disciplinary decisions can teach us about conflicts of interest We also look at conflict checks through a Canadian professional lens. The episode begins with an Alberta perspective, including the Law Society of Alberta and its approach to conflict management, before looking at the Federation of Law Societies of Canada's Model Code of Professional Conduct. We'll also discuss: 📚 MacDonald Estate v. Martin 📚 R. v. Neil 📚 Canadian National Railway Co. v. McKercher LLP and professional disciplinary decisions from British Columbia and Saskatchewan.  The goal is to understand what these authorities tell us about the practical importance of identifying and managing conflicts. 📝 Free Educational Workbook I've also created a Behind the Case Files Educational Workbook to accompany this episode. Inside you'll find: 📋 A Sample Client Intake Form 📋 A Sample Conflict Check Worksheet ✅ Conflict Check Best Practices 💼 A Practical Scenario 💭 Reflection Questions 📌 Key Learning Points 📚 Canadian Resources & Further Reading The workbook is designed as an educational resource and is not intended to replace your firm's policies, procedures, or forms.  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cvjXfHp9iG3rGQJQ8EoT4bL1NXFVijWP/view?usp=sharing Who is this episode for? Whether you're a: 🎓 Legal assistant or paralegal student 📁 Legal assistant working in an Alberta law office ⚖️ Alberta paralegal 🏢 Legal support professional 📚 Canadian law clerk or legal professional ⚖️ Ontario licensed paralegal or you're simply interested in understanding what happens behind the case files, this episode is designed to give you practical information you can take back to your work. 💡 The Question We're Answering Before a lawyer can answer: "Can you help me?" the office first needs to answer: "Can we act?" That's what this episode is really about. Because knowing what to do builds competence. Understanding why we do it builds confidence. About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033

  5. Aug 2

    Episode 21: Interview with Kristine Jeffels

    Send us Fan Mail Episode 21 | Interview with Kristine Jeffels | Instructor at Bow Valley College What does it really take to build a successful career in Canada's legal profession? In this episode of Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey, I sit down with Kristine Jeffels, instructor at Bow Valley College and mentor with the Alberta Association of Professional Paralegals, for an honest conversation about career growth, mentorship, and the evolving role of legal assistants and paralegals in Alberta. Whether you're a legal assistant student, an experienced legal assistant, an Alberta Paralegal, or simply exploring a career in law, this episode offers practical advice you can apply throughout your professional journey. Together we discuss: ⚖️ What separates successful legal assistants from those who struggle 🎓 How mentorship can accelerate your legal career 📚 Why continuing education never stops in the legal profession 🤝 The transition from legal assistant to paralegal 🏛️ The future of paralegal regulation in Alberta 💼 The skills Alberta law firms are looking for today 🚀 How confidence, not experience, often becomes the biggest obstacle to career growth Kristine also shares the advice she has given students for nearly two decades, including why every legal professional should always carry a pen and notebook and how simple habits can set you apart in a law office. If you've ever questioned whether you're ready for your next opportunity, this conversation will remind you that the experience you've already gained may be exactly what prepares you for it. 🎧 Listen now and join the conversation. 📍 Connect with me on LinkedIn and let me know your biggest takeaway from today's episode. ⭐ If you enjoyed this conversation, please follow the podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with another legal assistant or paralegal who could benefit from today's conversation. About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033

  6. Jul 21

    Episode 20: Building More Than a Career

    Send us Fan Mail About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033

  7. Jul 12

    Episode 19: Interview with Vanessa Wilson

    Send us Fan Mail About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033

  8. Jul 6

    Episode 18: What You Really Need Before Your Practicum: Six Habits That Will Make You a Better Legal Assistant or Paralegal

    Send us Fan Mail About Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey is a Canadian podcast hosted by Tara Edwards, an Alberta Registered Paralegal. Each episode features conversations with legal assistants, paralegals, lawyers, educators, and industry leaders from across Canada who share practical advice, career insights, and real-world experiences. Whether you work in law, work alongside the legal profession, are thinking about a career in this space, or simply want an honest look at the paralegal journey, you're in the right place. Because every experienced paralegal was once the person asking their first question. Here, we're all about learning, growing, and supporting one another along the way. So, welcome to the conversation. ⭐ Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 💼 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tara-edwards-vandenberg-arp-78607033

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Hosted by Alberta paralegal Tara Edwards, Sister-in-Law: The Paralegal Journey shares honest conversations about paralegal careers, legal support roles, mentorship, and the people who make the legal system work. 

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