Fraud Paralegal, Beth, writes about her daily routine working at CEL Solicitors – from her morning iced coffee to volunteer work.
I joined CEL Solicitors at the end of August last year and work within the Fraud Team as a Paralegal. I graduated with a Law Degree from Lancaster University in 2021 and I am now completing the Legal Practice Course and Masters alongside working full-time, which CEL are very supportive of. I will complete the LPC next year and hope to secure a training contract in the near future. I have thoroughly enjoyed my journey with CEL Solicitors so far, from starting on our First Response Team and progressing as a paralegal. CEL has supported my goals and allowed me to grow as an individual. I am proud of my self-development in the last 12 months, which I can only thank CEL Solicitors for.
8:30AM
I usually get into the office early in order to give myself time to get my daily Iced Coffee. I really appreciate this time in the morning as it allows me to ease into my day. I’m not a morning person and often wake up 15 minutes before I need to leave the house, so this half an hour in the morning allows my mind to wake up fully for the busy day ahead.
9:00AM
I start my day by looking at any emails that came in overnight or any tasks that may need my urgent attention that day. I also take the time to review my task list. This allows me to set a plan for the day and I will often write a small to-do list to keep myself on track.
10:00AM
Once I’ve set my plan and replied to any emails, I will begin my tasks for the day. This will usually be reviewing new files I’ve received. I work as a paralegal in the fraud department which means I deal with a multitude of clients who have suffered from a scam. For instance, we deal with the likes of investment, romance and purchase scams. It is a really rewarding job as I get to help people who are experiencing an incredibly distressing time and I can assist in getting people their money back after these devastating scams.
11:00AM
I will then contact new clients to introduce myself and have a detailed discussion about the scam they have suffered and how they are feeling. It is great to be able to give our clients an ear to listen, as often when clients get in contact with us, they feel without hope of getting their money back. More often than not, we are the first people clients talk to about the scam they have suffered, and I’m glad to be able to reassure our clients that help is available.
12:00PM – 2:00PM
Today I am actually volunteering with North Liverpool Foodbank. This was organised by our CSR committee in the firm to give everyone an opportunity to carry out volunteer work. CEL is always finding ways to provide employees new opportunities to develop as an individual and also help the wider community. I am really grateful for being given the opportunity to carry out volunteer work during my working hours.
During the volunteer work, it was to hand out leaflets to the public to encourage people to make donations to the North Liverpool Foodbank. Unfortunately, food banks are running low on resources with more people needing to rely on food banks. Amazingly, from our volunteer work, we managed to collect £489.50 in the buckets and 130.00kg of food which will help to feed 145 individuals or 69 families of 4!
Read more: Staff Volunteer at Tesco to Support the North Liverpool Foodbank
2:30PM
After a brilliant afternoon at the food bank, I return to the office and make sure to fill my 2L water bottle and get back to work. I look to see whether any emails have come in whilst I was out of the office and take the time to reply to any client queries. In the afternoon, I contact the defendant to chase for a response or chase any further information or documents from clients.
3:30PM
I continue to work through my task list for the day and draft a series of letters to the defendant.
4:30PM
Fraud Clinic Time. This is a great initiative set up for our department. Our fraud department, in particular, is expanding very quickly, providing us with the best opportunity to check in with everyone on the team. Also, we use this time to discuss any difficult issues we may have been faced with in the week and brainstorm together a range of solutions. This is great as it allows us to collaborate our ideas and thoughts which ultimately allows the team to provide greater support to our clients – two minds are always better than one!
I think it is important that collaboration is encouraged, especially in the legal industry. At CEL, we are always encouraged to work as a team and our office facilitates this as it is completely open-planned and allows us to discuss any issues, whether that be with a fellow colleague or manager.
5:00PM
We are officially done for the day and log off so I can attend my after-work yoga class and relax for the evening.
Find out more about what it’s like to work at CEL Solicitors and check out our current vacancies.
