Content of Your Attorney Resume - Part 2

Sunday, August 26, 2007

Content of Your Attorney Resume - Part 2

You are not writing an essay. Attorney resume, there is no need to use "I" or "my", and you should eliminate articles where appropriate. A better phrasing of "I reorganized the firm's billing practices, reducing our errors by 35%" is "Reorganized billing practices, reducing errors by 35%." Short phrases and sentence fragments are the most efficient and effective methods for making your point.

Your accomplishments are more important than your "responsibilities." Attorney Resume: What sounds more impressive - the fact that you were "Responsible for filing and storage of case records " or that you "Structured system for filing and storage to minimize cost and maximize availability of documents?" "Responsibilities" implies passive activity, which won't excite the person thinking of paying you. Using Action Verbs (see Appendix I) will revive the active voice and energize each job's duties and accomplishments. Several important Action Verbs to keep in mind are "enacted", "performed", "supervised", "maintained", "organized", and "developed".