How I Became a Paralegal. 

Written by
James Scheffer

I arrived onboard the USS CARL VINSON as an undesignated Airman, which basically means I would be placed in a position that required little more than a warm body.  My first assignment was to V-2 Division, catapults and arresting gear.  The mission of the Division was to operate the ship’s equipment that launched an aircraft into the air from a runway at sea.  This also includes the retrieval of the aircraft upon landing in a manner that is best described as a controlled crash.  Life in V-2 Division was grueling.  “Flight quarters! Flight quarters!” would be the call through the 1MC, an all hands intercom system onboard Navy ships.  I would gear up and make my way swiftly to my post.  My job was to take a big bar that looked and felt like those that you add weights to at the gym, run up under an aircraft with jet engines in full roar, duck (so as to not be sucked in by the intake), attach one end of the bar to the catapult and the other to the aircraft (there was a little dumbbell-looking piece you attached that breaks away at a specific pressure point as the aircraft launches).  I would then scurry back to the “catwalk” on the side of the ship high above the ocean where I would duck again.  The jet propelled to the end of the flight deck with a loud “boom!”  A large tank of water below deck stopped a piston propelling the aircraft forward, the little dumbbell broke away, and the aircraft launched into the air with all its force.  After all the aircraft were safely launched, the next task was to perform preventative maintenance on this massive piece of machinery.  After this, we would conduct a “field day,” however, not the kind you may have experienced in elementary school.  Our field day involved thoroughly cleaning every nook and cranny of our assigned work spaces.  The complete evolution would often take 15 to 18 hours and we were allowed to eat, rest, and get cleaned up during the remaining 6 to 9 hours, if you weren’t assigned to a security watch.

One day, when the ship was in homeport, the catapults were lifted from their troughs and my job was to climb down into the trough and clean grease.  I was young, full of energy, and quite happy to be there.  I proudly announced who I was and where I was from to a shipmate angrily cleaning the grease next to me.  He did not respond and was in a pretty foul mood.  I later discovered he had been disciplined for misconduct and was performing extra duties as a part of his punishment.  This made me stop and think, “This is my job which others are required to perform as punishment?”  I was suddenly aware and looking for another path for my naval career.  Shortly after that experience, I was visiting the Division tool shop when I encountered another shipmate working on a course book for Navy Legalman, an administrative position.  I asked why he was working on the qualifications and he proudly announced he was planning on becoming a Navy Legalman.  “Navy Legalman? What is that?” I asked.  He informed me that there was an announcement in the ship’s Plan of the Day (a daily publication) seeking sailors who may be interested in transferring to the Ship’s Legal Office and converting to Legalman.  The Legal Office is where they prepare discipline cases for non-judicial punishment and courts-martial; conduct JAG Manual Investigations into serious incidents; provided legal assistance; and perform a whole host of other legal services.  I wasn’t sure what all it entailed, but knew it didn’t involve the flight deck, 18 hour workdays, or completing tasks that others were assigned as a form of punishment!

 I vigorously began completing my qualifications for conversion to Navy Legalman and submitted a request to transfer to the Legal Department.  Approval of my request required that I complete “on-the-job training” in the legal office during my off-duty time (of which I had little while at sea).  I was therefore resigned to performing on-the-job training while in homeport, where we only worked eight to twelve hours days because you obviously don’t launch aircraft unless you are at sea.  However, while in homeport, the legal office was in full swing since sailors on liberty tend to get in a little trouble now and again.

My first assignment in the legal office was filing a huge tray of papers, which I did with pride, again and again until I had the Chief all caught up on his filing.  I was then assigned a “real” Legalman task to perform.  I was “allowed” to type a tray full of about 50 of powers of attorney.  I was excited.  I sat down, turned on the typewriter, rolled a form into the carriage and then suddenly realized… “I don’t know how to type!”  All I could hear was the sudden and extremely loud humming of the Selectric III typewriter before me.  Up until that very moment I hadn’t realized that the typewriter made any noise at all if someone wasn’t typing.  Not one to give up and desperate to succeed, I began to type the information onto the forms, slowly but surely, so I thought.  I had wasted about ten forms when the Chief showed up to ask how things were going and why I had so many forms in the trashcan.  I sheepishly admitted that I had made some typing errors and needed to keep starting over.  He informed me that the typewriter came equipped with correction tape to fix mistakes.  Wow!  Correction tape!  I went through a roll of that in no time and had to find ways to obtain correction tape from friends in the supply department so it wouldn’t be known how much I was actually using.  Nevertheless, I persisted and got through that stack only to be rewarded with another.  My speed and accuracy began to increase, but I secretly purchased a manual (that means no electricity required) Mexican typewriter at a local pawn shop and began practicing and practicing my typing every evening.  Things progressed, and in time, I was given more and more opportunities while completing my on-the-job training.

After 90 days, my time in the Legal Office became routine.  Whenever a sailor has “duty” he is required to stay onboard the ship for a full 24-hour period and stand various watches or participate in working parties to load/unload stores and materials.  During my duty days, I spent every available hour performing my on-the-job training.  One evening, I was supposed to meet the Chief outside his office at 1800.  I got off watch, cleaned up, and hustled to the Legal Office so as not to be late.  No one was there when I arrived, so I awaited the Chief’s entrance in the passageway.  At around 2100, he arrived with sleep in his eyes and appeared to have been napping before coming to the office.  He asked me why I was standing in the passageway outside the office, and I reminded him that he instructed me to be there at 1800.  He asked why I was still standing there, and I told him I was waiting on him so I could get in and get some work done.  The very next day my request for transfer to the Legal Office was approved!  After two years in the ship’s Legal Office I was transferred to attend Navy Justice School in Newport Rhode Island, where I graduated with honors and was approved for conversion to Navy Legalman or “paralegal.”   My four year enlistment in the Navy turned into a 20 year career in which I promoted through the ranks and retired as a Senior Chief Legalman.  However, lessons I learned during that 90 day on- the-job training period have carried me ever since, and can certainly be useful to all aspiring paralegals: 

            be persistent in pursing your trade,

            learn new skill sets and continually seek to improve them;

            take initiative;

            be resourceful; and

            most importantly, be reliable.

•  del.icio.us •  digg •  facebook
E-mail this article to a friend (requires login).

For additional information on this Personal Interest STory article, please contact:

Gail Armatys
(713) 529-2778

Source: James Scheffer

Related Documents:

Content Tags: personal interest story • success

Other Recent Articles:

Return to the Center For Advanced Legal Studies Articles Search Page