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Attorney General Martha Coakley: Hi. I’m Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley.
You know a lot of young people ask us what kind of job opportunities are available here
at the Attorney General’s Office. Although we certainly hire and use a lot of lawyers
here, we also rely upon many people who have not gone to law school and do work here as
paralegals, or in other capacities. We employ criminal and labor investigators. We hire
mediators who work with consumers, trying to work through scams or fraud. We employ
computer specialists who work with our Cyber Crime Division, to make sure that kids are
safe online and that we go after online fraud. We also rely upon people with financial and
human relation skills, to help us do our job every single day on behalf of the Commonwealth
and the people of the Commonwealth.
Advocate Fatima Breton: My name is Fatima Breton. I am an advocate outreach coordinator,
Executive Bureau, the Victim Compensation Division.
Director Quinton Dale: My name is Quinton Dale, Chief of Investigations in the Public
Protection and Advocacy Bureau. We offer investigative support to all the cases being litigated in
the bureau.
Paralegal Julie Collins: My name is Julie Collins. I’m the senior paralegal in the
Administrative Law Division. I have worked in the office for a little over ten years.
Paralegal Ben Zaitchik: My name is Ben Zaitchik, I’m a paralegal in the IUFD, which is the
Insurance & Unemployment Fraud Division. I’ve been here for approximately a year and a half.
Contract Coordinator Kerisotellia Ford: My name is Kerisotellia Ford. My position is
Contract Coordinator and I work in the Budget Department, in the Executive Bureau, of the
Office of the Attorney General.
Dale: The job changes daily I’d say, it’s… the cases are somewhat the same, but the players
are different and it’s always a little bit of a new wrinkle to the case.
Breton: I have a great role, because I do advocacy for victims of violent crimes, the
claimants who apply, and also I do outreach, in a sense of promoting victim compensation
and providing the information, trainings, presentations… video training presentations.
Ford: When I was hired, I was hired to assist the Contract Manager of the Budget Department,
which meant that I dealt with all of the contracts when they came into the office, and reread
all the contracts to make sure all the paperwork was included in the contract package before
I gave the contracts to the contract manager to execute.
Collins: I came here from the Civil Service Commission, and I started in the Administrative
Law Division as a paralegal. Within a couple of years I was named Senior Paralegal.
Zaitchik: In the Insurance & Unemployment Fraud Division we have a few investigators
and several attorneys, and we work at investigating and prosecuting all sorts of fraud against
insurers…automotive insurers, medical…
Breton: Another aspect of my job is that it provides me the opportunity to meet new people,
interact with community representatives or representatives from the various community
organizations, and also a great opportunity to network about the office and the program,
the work that we do here.
Collins: In the office, my job or duties include anything from the case management of particular
cases, to assisting with trial preparation, and the drafting of legal briefs or memoranda.
Dale: Our priority has been on the housing market and the predatory lending aspects and
also advancing the technology of the office and integrating it into the day-to-day functions.
Collins: It’s constantly challenging. That’s what I truly enjoy about the office…
Ford: Even though we have our individual duties that we deal with, we still have to deal with
each other as a team because there might be something that me or the purchasing coordinator
or anyone else in the department needs from another person, and we’re more than willing
to get that information for the other person, so I think as in any other department we work
as a team as well.
Zaitchik: There’s a strong team concept in this office…everyone has their own cases,
but at the same time, people work with each other, if someone’s tight on a deadline
everyone will chip in and make sure their work gets done.
Dale: The cases are all built in a team format, meaning there are two attorneys, one’s the
lead attorney on the case and there’s the support staff of paralegals and administrative
assistants, and then there’s the investigative team that’s a part of that case and it’s
a collaborative effort to move the case to its final disposition.
Breton: It’s a great environment. It’s very team oriented, we’re all very supportive
of each other and our roles. Cross-training is greatly encouraged and we do…we all wear
multiple hats. On any given day, we could all switch roles and that’s a wonderful
thing.
Ford: I am involved with the diversity committee of the Attorney General’s Office, and we
actually have different sub-committees within the Diversity Committee and I’m involved
with the community service committee of the Diversity Committee…which means that we
do different community service events, that the staff…that the Attorney General staff
can participate in.
Collins: The atmosphere of the office is very hard-working, intellectual, as well as very
humorous at times. Everybody keeps a sense of humor.
Zaitchik: I came here with little experience in law and I’ve learned so much from the
investigators and lawyers here in law and criminal justice and they’ve been very helpful
throughout the whole thing. They’re very experienced lawyers and I couldn’t have
asked to work with a better group of people.
Dale: It’s a great culture to walk into everyday and come into contact with so many
different people, from so many different kinds of backgrounds that are serving one common
goal.
Collins: I really enjoy working with the attorneys. I’ve learned so much from them over the
years, I…It’s amazing. And they have all been so willing to teach me, you know, what
they know.
Zaitchik: I had been considering going to law school, but just wasn’t sure I was ready
for it, and wanted some work experience before so, you know particularly in a law environment…So
I really couldn’t have asked for a better job than this and since working here I’ve
become more informed about what it is to work in an environment like this, and I feel like
I’m ready to decide what I’m going to do career-wise.
Breton: At the end of the day, when I go home I feel most joy about my job because I feel
it’s an opportunity to assist those individuals who cannot assist themselves at dramatic times
in their lives.
Collins: I consider myself so lucky to work with the people that I work with, they are
so smart and so humble, and just a…it sounds kind of corny, but a joy to work with every
day.
Dale: At the end of the day I feel that this office and our unit in particular is having
an effect on the quality of life for everyone in the Commonwealth. We really are making
a dent everyday and improving and making sure everyone has a fair opportunity to flourish
in the Commonwealth. And that’s important to me…equal rights.
Zaitchik: I guess one of the good things is aside from just getting the experience of
working here and working with some knowledgeable, good people is that I feel like I’m doing
a public good and that we’re on the right side of the law here. And, you know it really
feels good coming home at the end of the day and knowing that you’re working for the
Commonwealth on behalf of citizens.
Collins: I would say it’s the greatest opportunity you could ever have whether you stay for two
years or ten. I do actually, whenever someone is looking for a job I say, “Oh why don’t
you look at the office? You know take a look at the website and see what’s available”,
I have loved working here. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Coakley: I hope that you will consider a job here with us at the Attorney General’s Office.
Thanks for your time and I wish you well with your studies and your career search.