Ristvey Legal Search, LLC is a boutique legal recruiting firm and noted specialist in all levels of permanent attorney and paralegal placement, meeting the unique hiring needs of law firms and corporations in the legal markets throughout the United States and abroad, with particular focus on the East Coast.
Ristvey Legal Search, LLC is a member of the National Association of Legal Search Consultants (NALSC), and strictly adheres to and exceeds NALSC Code of Ethics.
“At Ristvey Legal Search, LLC we effectuate enduring matches in the legal community by forging trusted and lifelong relationships with our clients. We recruit permanent attorney and paralegal placements both nationally and abroad from all specialty practice areas.”
Founded on the supposition that each law firm and corporate legal department is unique, Ristvey Legal Search, LLC believes the only way to effectuate a real match is through forging meaningful and lasting relationships with our clients and candidates. This premise has enabled Ristvey Legal Search, LLC to give its clients the competitive edge when discovering the high caliber talent they seek.
Due to the close relationship Ristvey Legal Search, LLC has with its clients, Ristvey Legal Search, LLC works with a select clientele so that we may provide our clients with the utmost personal attention and prompt response to meet our client’s specific hiring needs; consequently, Ristvey Legal Search, LLC conducts a select number of legal searches at a time.
Stephanie A. Ristvey founded Ristvey Legal Search LLC, after working in the legal industry for over 25 years as a paralegal, firm administrator and legal recruiter for both national and regional recruiting firms, including one of the county’s oldest legal recruiting agencies.
Stephanie has built close relationships with hiring partners, administrators, attorneys, and corporate legal departments. These relationships allow her to create opportunities and make successful matches for attorneys and paralegals. Stephanie is widely respected for her experience, insight, diligence and integrity.
A 1984 graduate of Juniata College, Stephanie earned her Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Russian. She attended the prestigious Institute for Paralegal Training, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, one of the first ABA approved programs in the nation, and obtained her certificate in Litigation Management.
Stephanie is an associate member of the Philadelphia Bar Association, and serves on the Paralegal Advisory Board for the Community College of Philadelphia. In addition, she is adjunct faculty member of the Paralegal programs with Saint Joseph’s University and the Community College of Philadelphia. Stephanie is a frequent lecturer in the areas of legal recruiting and paralegal practice and contributor to the Legal Intelligencer.
Firmly believing in public service, Stephanie serves on the Board of Directors of Philoptochos, the philanthropic arm of the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation, Elkins Park, PA. When she is not recruiting or volunteering in the community, Stephanie enjoys traveling with her standard dachshund, Dagmar.
Discovering high-caliber legal talent within law firms and in-house corporate legal departments.
At Ristvey Legal Search, LLC we value our relationships with the clients we serve. We work hard to:
Our philosophy is simple: When we discover high-caliber legal talent that meets or exceed your expetations, we give you the competitive edge you seek.
Ristvey Legal Search, LLC focuses on the recruitment of permanent attorney and paralegal placements from all specialty practice areas, nationally and abroad, with an emphasis on the East Coast.
Ristvey Legal Search, LLC knows the legal market, and keeps abreast of the changes affecting the market place and the practice of law. Using our diverse network within the legal industry and our creative research methods, Ristvey Legal Search, LLC is able to discover talented attorneys and paralegals. Potential matches are carefully interviewed and vetted to ensure that they possess the experience, credentials, abilities, and values our clients are seeking. We do not submit or disclose any potential match without first obtaining definitive authorization from the attorney or paralegal candidate.
We are mindful that confidentiality is an essential element of every search. As a member of the National Association of Legal Search Consultants, (NALSC), we strictly adhere to and exceed the NALSC Code of Ethics.
If you are a firm representative seeking more information about our search process and unique fee offerings, please call Stephanie A. Ristvey, President at 215.579.0600, or e-mail.
You will find that our unique fee structure for attorney and paralegal matches is competitive. No fee is due unless a match has been made.
Although our principal relationships are with our clients, Ristvey Legal Search, LLC values our relationships with our attorney candidates. Forging strong, meaningful and trusting relationships with our candidates affords us the opportunity to get to know you , your career goals, practice and values, enabling us to make matches with law firms and corporate legal departments that share your goals, philosophy and values.
Because we work with a limited clientele, our clients have exacting requirements and seek only those candidates that fit their specific criteria: strong academic credentials and experience practicing law in well-regarded law firms and corporate legal departments. It is not very often that we are asked to fill entry-level positions.
Once we receive your resume, we will objectively and candidly review your credentials to determine which positions may be a match. Should, we find a match, we will meet with you and provide you with relevant information about the position and our client's firm or corporate legal department.
Only upon your explicit consent will we present a detailed and confidential profile delineating your experience and qualifications, including your resume to our client for consideration. We also will provide our assessment of your qualifications and why we believe you would be a match for the position. We will work with you every step of the way including interview strategy and offer negotiation. Naturally, we keep our candidates apprised of their status.
If we are unable to place you, we will direct you to appropriate resources and will critique your resume and writing samples free of charge.
Ristvey Legal Search, LLC understands that Partners and Attorneys with portable business have specific needs when considering new opportunities. Regardless of your reason for wanting to explore a change, we are here to confidentially advise and guide you to make your transition a positive and rewarding one.
If you are an attorney looking for new opportunities and seeking more information about our search process, please call Stephanie A. Ristvey, President at 215.579.0600, or e-mail your resume and preferred contact information.
Although our principal relationships are with our clients, Ristvey Legal Search, LLC values our relationships with our paralegal candidates. Forging strong, meaningful and trusting relationships with our paralegal candidates affords us the opportunity to get to know you and your career goals, skill sets and values, enabling us to make matches with law firms and corporate legal departments that will give you the opportunity to work in an environment that permits you to thrive and be successful.
Because we work with a limited clientele, our clients have exacting requirements and seek only those candidates that fit their specific criteria. Most often, our clients seek paralegals with strong academic credentials, particularly those who hold Bachelor’s degrees and a certificate from an ABA approved Paralegal Program or an Associate’s degrees from ABA approved Paralegal programs, along with solid work experience with well- regarded law firms and in-house corporate legal departments. It is not very often that we are asked to fill entry-level positions.
Once we receive your resume, we will objectively and candidly review your credentials to determine which positions may be a match. Should a position matching your credentials materialize, we will meet with you to assess your professional skills and career goals to ensure that your resume accurately reflects your qualifications. We also will provide you with relevant information about the position and our client’s firm or corporation.
Only upon your explicit consent will we present a detailed and confidential profile delineating your experience and qualifications, including your resume to our client for consideration. We also will provide our assessment of your qualifications and why we believe you would be a match for the position submitted. We will work with you every step of the way including interviewing strategies and negotiating an offer. Naturally, we keep our candidates apprised of their status.
For paralegals looking for opportunities and seeking more information about our search process, please call Stephanie A. Ristvey, President at 215.579.0600, or e-mail your resume in a Word document.
In order to preserve client confidentiality, we do not publish all of our clients' open positions. Below please find a list of some of the opportunities currently available.
See Openings Close
Thank you for choosing Ristvey Legal Search, LLC. We look forward to working with you as you transition into your new position. In strict confidence, kindly submit your resume in a Word document.
A legal recruiter’s blog . . .
On placing high caliber attorneys and paralegals in law firms and in-house corporate legal departments
Jul 07: Trending Practice Areas for Paralegals
WHAT PRACTICE AREAS ARE TRENDING FOR PARALEGALS
By Stephanie A. Ristvey, Owner/President, Ristvey Legal Search LLC
If you’re contemplating a job change or a new specialty, environmental law and intellectual property law are in-demand practice areas you might want to consider.
Environmental Law
Environmental (or “green”) law issues are as varied and interesting as today’s headline news. You could be researching water rights issues related to severe drought, preparing for hearings on the contamination of drinking water by hydraulic fracking in the natural gas extraction industry, or performing environmental due diligence for property acquisitions and development.
Not currently familiar with environmental law? Be prepared to be your own teacher! When I worked on mold contamination cases as a beginning paralegal, I did my homework on the science of mold. It was a huge learning curve for me because I’d avoided science courses in college. However, I understood that in order to be taken seriously, I had to become a mold expert.
Intellectual Property Law
Intellectual property law is an expanding field. Everyone – businesses, authors, musicians, even tattoo artists – wants to protect their creative work. If a company considers its intellectual capital to be one of its most valuable assets, then trademarks, copyrights, and patents for scientific and technological innovations are critical.
In addition, the global digital world has created issues around the protection of electronic content (from the Internet to smartphones), and in the last few years we’ve seen an uptick in lawsuits involving software-related patents as well.
Here again, you could be dealing with very technologically sophisticated patents in complex fields such as nanotechnology, pharmacology, or engineering (just to name a few) so you’ll have to be motivated to learn and do research if you don’t have a math or science background.
Recommendations
Whichever field you chose, you’ll have to monitor recent court decisions and stay on top of the latest changes in the laws. Since you’ll be a liaison between your firm, your client, and state and federal regulatory agencies, top-notch writing and communication skills are indispensable.
Collegial and highly regarded Plaintiff’s firm seeks to add an experienced litigation paralegal to work with senior partner on complex catastrophic personal injury litigation matters that include medical malpractice, product liability, construction and crashes. If you are looking to be a valued member of the team and possess at least 5 years’ experience handling complex litigation matters from analyzing medical and employment records, to assisting with propounding discovery requests and responses, working closely with expert and fact witnesses this position just might be for you. Strong organizational, time management and communications skills are a must. Highly competitive compensation and benefits package and this firm even pays your medical deductible! This is a drama free firm and the paralegals at this firm are considered professionals.
Location: Center City PhiladelphiaOur client, a small but successful general practice firm is putting succession planning into place and is looking to add an experienced Estates and Trusts attorney to work closely with one of the firm’s partners. The right candidate will have at least 5 years' experience with estate and trust planning including preparation of Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, Advanced Medical Directives, various Trusts, as well as advising businesses on succession and wealth planning. Qualified candidates shall be licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania. Although not required, having a little bit of portable business is a plus. If you are looking for a collegial environment and a firm that offers a work-life balance and excellent support services including skilled estate administration paralegals, this is a great opportunity that you do not want to miss. To apply in strict confidence, please send your resume in a Word document to Stephanie@ristveylegalsearch.com or for more information, feel free to call 215.579.0600.
Location: Lower Bucks CountyVery collegial full- service law firm located in the greater Doylestown area is looking to add an experienced family law attorney to their growing firm for succession planning purposes. The right candidate will be a passionate advocate for his/her clients and have at least 4 years’ experience handling legal separation, divorce matters, pre- and post- nuptial agreements, spousal support, child custody, child support, pet custody and support and litigation. Qualified candidates must be a self-starter and member of Pennsylvania Bar, in good standing with experience before Bucks County Courts. This is a very collegial and supportive law firm. No portable business is necessary, but the desire to build a practice is important. Competitive compensation/benefits and real work-life balance is offered.
Location: Lower Bucks CountyOne of your favorite clients is looking to add a junior litigation attorney who would enjoy becoming a generalist. The ideal candidate will have at least 1 year of experience working as a litigation attorney for a mid-sized law firm and willing to be trained in the areas of corporate transactions and real estate. This firm is known for its mentoring and helping attorneys meet their professional and personal goals. Must possess PA Bar in good standing and have strong academic background. Highly competitive compensation package.
Location: Suburban PhiladelphiaOur client, an AV rated, progressive suburban Philadelphia law firm seeks to build its well-regarded Trusts and Estates practice group. The right candidate will have at least 5 years' experience with estate and trust planning including preparation of Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney and Advanced Medical Directives, Special Needs Trusts, as well as advising businesses on succession and wealth planning. Qualified candidates shall be licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and have large law firm experience. Strong academic credentials, required. LLM in Taxation is a plus, but not necessary. Although not required, having a little bit of portable business is a plus. The attorneys at this firm enjoy a real work-life balance, camaraderie, mentorship and highly competitive compensation and benefits package. To apply in strict confidence, please send your resume in a Word document to Stephanie@ristveylegalsearch.com or for more information, feel free to call 215.579.0600.
Location: Suburban PhiladelphiaOur client, a well -regarded business and general practice firm is seeking an experienced Landlord Tenant and Collections attorney to handle a newly acquired practice area. The ideal candidate will have a minimum of 3 years of handling and managing landlord-tenant legal disputes, residential and commercial, including evictions, fair housing claims, rent escrows, HOA and ejectments and all other types of related issues with solid understanding of Municipal and District court procedures in Philadelphia and greater metropolitan area.
Location: Lower Bucks CountyWell-regarded regional firm is growing and looking to add an experienced Philadelphia real estate attorney with at least 5 years’ experience handling commercial real estate development and transactions, with an emphasis on land use approvals and permitting, site acquisition and disposition, construction, and leasing matters. This firm is known for listening to their attorneys and finding out what is working to make life better. Very collegial environment, competitive compensation and sophisticated work.
Location: Center City PhiladelphiaOur client, a well-regarded national firm is looking to add a seasoned litigator who has at least 18 years’ First chair experience handling complex litigation matters including product liability, construction and commercial matters. This firm offers very attractive terms for attorneys with at least $400K in a book of portable business. If you are tired of being told that you need to increase your billing rates or that you can’t do your client a favor by “writing off” part of a bill without permission from administration, then this firm is well worth exploring. Very collegial environment and cross-selling opportunities with a very financially healthy firm. For consideration, in strict confidence please send your resume in Word or PDF formats to Stephanie Ristvey at stephanie@ristveylegalsearch.com. Ms. Ristvey will personally reach out to you and meet with you at your convenience.
Location: Center City PhiladelphiaOur client, a well-regarded regional firm is looking to add a seasoned litigator who has at least 10 years’ First chair experience handling complex litigation matters including product liability, construction and commercial matters. This firm offers very attractive terms for attorneys with at least $400K in a book of portable business. If you are tired of being told that you need to increase your billing rates or that you can’t do your client a favor by “writing off” part of a bill without permission from administration, then this firm is well worth exploring. Very collegial environment and cross-selling opportunities with a very financially healthy firm. For consideration, in strict confidence please send your resume in Word or PDF formats to Stephanie Ristvey at stephanie@ristveylegalsearch.com. Ms. Ristvey will personally reach out to you and meet with you at your convenience.
Location: WilmingtonWell regarded plaintiffs law firm seeks experienced legal secretary/legal assistant to work closely with 2 partners. Qualified candidates will possess at least 8 years’ experience handling diverse personal injury matters including auto-tort, slip and fall, workers compensation and medical malpractice. If you are a self-starter and possess strong time management, interpersonal and communication skills, this position is worth exploring. A high level of professionalism including punctuality is paramount. Duties include full cycle case work -up from meeting with clients at intake through drafting correspondence, requesting medical records and bills, preparing medical summaries and settlement demand packages, drafting discovery, scheduling meetings and preparation for trial, mediations and arbitrations. If you are looking for a collegial work environment where the partners appreciate and respect their support staff, this is a great opportunity for you. Proficiency with Needles, MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook required. Although possessing an Associate degree in Paralegal Studies is a plus, will consider experience. Competitive compensation and benefits package offered, including free parking.
Location: Delaware County
Ristvey Legal Search, LLC is committed to giving back to the communities in which we work. For every placement made, Ristvey Legal Search will make a donation to a local bar foundation, food pantry or other local charitable organization to help those in need.
Philadelphia Bar Foundation or other Foundation that helps provide legal resources to those in need.
philabarfoundation.org
Philabundance or other local food pantry that helps provide nourishment to the less fortunate.
philabundance.org
IOCC offers emergency relief and development programs to those in need worldwide.
iocc.org
FOCUS North America provides action-oriented and sustainable solutions to poverty in communities across America.
focusnorthamerica.org
Allegheny County Bar Foundation provides educational programming, promotes public awareness of the legal and judicial systems, renders legal services to low-income clients, and provides financial assistance and grants to legal related organizations.
acbf.org
Maryland Bar Foundation is a non-profit charitable corporation organized in 1965.
msba.org
Ristvey Legal Search, LLC is a boutique legal recruiting firm and noted specialist in all levels of permanent attorney and paralegal placement, meeting the unique hiring needs of law firms and corporations in the legal markets throughout the United States and abroad, with particular focus on the East Coast.
Ristvey Legal Search, LLC is a member of the National Association of Legal Search Consultants (NALSC), and strictly adheres to and exceeds NALSC Code of Ethics.
Ristvey Legal Search, LLC
Silver Lake Executive Campus
41 University Drive, Suite 400
Newtown, PA 18940
mail@RistveyLegalSearch.com
215.579.0600
