Valerie A. Fontaine earned her JD from UC Law San Francisco (formerly UC Hastings) and her BA, Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude, from UCLA. She was on the Editorial Board of COMM/ENT, a Journal of Communications and Entertainment Law. Valerie practiced law with a prominent Los Angeles law firm and entered the legal search profession in 1981. Valerie is Secretary to the Board of Directors of the National Association of Legal Search Consultants (NALSC) and Chairs its Newsletter Committee.
Visibility greatly impacts career success. Being visible means not only being seen but also being included, recognized, and valued by others. Now that most lawyers are working remotely and can’t rely on developing relationships via organic, in-person interactions, you must be more creative and intentional about making your presence known. Doing good work is a…
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Holidays are a good time to reach out to people you haven’t spoken to in a while, the ones you usually see only at holiday parties, and those who mean the most to you and your business. In this time of social distancing, extra thought must go into your holiday wishes, which can be in…
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“Why is there ‘Esq.’ after your name?” asked my grandfather, who had moved to the United States from England, “You’re not a gentleman!” I had proudly handed him one of my first post-Bar-admission business cards, and that was not the reaction I expected. I informed him that, in the U.S., “Esquire” denotes lawyer, irrespective of…
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Virtual job interviews became the norm following the nationwide business shutdown prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Legal industry employers learned, by necessity, that virtual working and hiring was effective and, perhaps, even preferred. With law firms and corporations spanning the nation and the globe, interviewing via videoconference will remain an important part of the hiring…
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