Valerie A. Fontaine earned her JD from UC Hastings College of Law 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.
Searching for a new job sometimes means taking your “show” in the road for an out of town interview. Given the national and global reach of many law firms and corporations, even if you’re seeking a position locally, you may need to meet key players in the organization’s far flung offices. The interview itself is…
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OK, El Nino might be an exaggeration, but a lawyer can dream. Rainmaking does not mean you have to go far outside your comfort zone; rather, you only need to be the best version of yourself. 1. Be nice to everyone you meet. You never know who is related to whom or knows someone who…
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To conduct a successful job search, you need to tell a consistent story in your resume and cover letter, and continue the theme throughout the interview process. Just as a narrative hook grabs readers’ attention at the beginning of a story and draws them in so they continue reading, in a job search, you need…
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Towards the end of the calendar year most law firms announce the elevation of their new partnership classes. Although the demand for legal services picked up somewhat since the end of the recession, especially in transactional areas of practice, firms remain conservative in their partnership decisions. What does it really mean to become a partner? …
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