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Episode 104: Bringing Awareness to Paralegal Disabilities – An Interview with Samantha Brillantino

Ann Pearson

In this episode, Ann interviews Samantha Brillantino, a paralegal who has overcome challenges and defied expectations in her career. She emphasizes the importance of believing in oneself and not letting others define your capabilities. Samantha also discusses her learning disability and how she has learned to navigate the legal industry while managing her disability. 

Samantha shares her insights and tips for paralegals in areas such as:

  • How to persevere when others underestimate you
  • Exploring opportunities for career growth and development
  • The importance of communication, continuous learning, and self-awareness

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Your Actionable Strategy

  1. If you’re an individual with a disability, be open and honest about your challenges with your managers and seek support from companies that value inclusivity.
  2. Network, join professional associations, and attend seminars to expand your career opportunities.
  3. Don’t stop believing in yourself. Push through challenges and prove others wrong in the process.

Litigation Paralegal Boot Camp

Are you tired of being the Panic Mode Paralegal who spends your days playing whack-a-mole with last-minute rush projects because you’re waiting for someone to show you what it takes to be a great litigation paralegal?

This is the only program of its kind that provides litigation paralegals with all of the tools to master litigation cases from the complaint through the trial, and everything in between.

You will be the Confident Case Strategist faster than you ever imagined possible.

And I will be there guiding you to the finish line!

LEARN MORE
Ann Person poses for an image used for the Billable Hour Boot Camp for law firms in the paralegal training section of the blog.
Paralegal disabilities

Meet the Podcast Guest

Samantha Brillantino has been working in the legal industry since graduating from Salisbury University in 2017. She received her ABA paralegal certificate from Fairleigh Dickinson in 2019. She is currently a legal specialist at one of the largest medical technology companies in the world. Despite facing doubts from recruiters, teachers, and others, she has proven them wrong and continues to do so. She faces challenges every day due to her learning disability, which was diagnosed in grad school and is not something she can outgrow. However, she tells her story to inspire others to believe that anything is possible.
 
Samantha Brillantino is passionate about motivating people with disabilities and supporting the paralegal community. She attends seminars, networking events, and is part of paralegal associates to gain knowledge in the legal world and learn from other paralegals. Her possible accomplishment is to be a guest speaker for the New Jersey Paralegal Association next year, where she will discuss career planning in the legal industry. She is committed to helping others succeed in finding a job or advancing in their career.
 
In her free time, Samantha enjoys her kickboxing classes, reading a good book and spending time with family and friends.

Want to be the first to know when the next podcast episode is released?

Get added to our podcast mailing list here.

Support the Paralegals on Fire! Podcast Show

Did you get a tip from today’s episode to help you fast-track your paralegal career?

Click here to Give the show a review, and let me know what you enjoy most about the Paralegals on Fire! Podcast Show. I’ll be reading every one of them! –Ann Pearson

 

A Paralegal Resource For You

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A Spotify logo and name in PNG format

Your Actionable Strategy

  1. If you’re an individual with a disability, be open and honest about your challenges with your managers and seek support from companies that value inclusivity.
  2. Network, join professional associations, and attend seminars to expand your career opportunities.
  3. Don’t stop believing in yourself. Push through challenges and prove others wrong in the process.

Litigation Paralegal Boot Camp

Are you tired of being the Panic Mode Paralegal who spends your days playing whack-a-mole with last-minute rush projects because you’re waiting for someone to show you what it takes to be a great litigation paralegal?

This is the only program of its kind that provides litigation paralegals with all of the tools to master litigation cases from the complaint through the trial, and everything in between.

You will be the Confident Case Strategist faster than you ever imagined possible.

And I will be there guiding you to the finish line!

LEARN MORE
Ann Person poses for an image used for the Billable Hour Boot Camp for law firms in the paralegal training section of the blog.
Paralegal disabilities

Meet the Podcast Guest

Samantha Brillantino has been working in the legal industry since graduating from Salisbury University in 2017. She received her ABA paralegal certificate from Fairleigh Dickinson in 2019. She is currently a legal specialist at one of the largest medical technology companies in the world. Despite facing doubts from recruiters, teachers, and others, she has proven them wrong and continues to do so. She faces challenges every day due to her learning disability, which was diagnosed in grad school and is not something she can outgrow. However, she tells her story to inspire others to believe that anything is possible.
 
Samantha Brillantino is passionate about motivating people with disabilities and supporting the paralegal community. She attends seminars, networking events, and is part of paralegal associates to gain knowledge in the legal world and learn from other paralegals. Her possible accomplishment is to be a guest speaker for the New Jersey Paralegal Association next year, where she will discuss career planning in the legal industry. She is committed to helping others succeed in finding a job or advancing in their career.
 
In her free time, Samantha enjoys her kickboxing classes, reading a good book and spending time with family and friends.

Want to be the first to know when the next podcast episode is released?

Get added to our podcast mailing list here.

Support the Paralegals on Fire! Podcast Show

Did you get a tip from today’s episode to help you fast-track your paralegal career?

Click here to Give the show a review, and let me know what you enjoy most about the Paralegals on Fire! Podcast Show. I’ll be reading every one of them! –Ann Pearson

 

A Paralegal Resource For You

What others are saying about our training programs

Definitely a "Must" Course!
By Angela Grindle
I was amazed at how many of these lessons hit home as a working paralegal. I absolutely love this course.
Excellent Actionable Resources!
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This course makes an overwhelming topic clear and actionable. The templates and resources are a huge value.
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This course is everything it says it is! I would recommend this course not only to Paralegals, but attorneys as well.
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Ann has done a great job providing in-depth information on how to successfully utilize AI in the legal field. The personal robot she built for us was a bonus!

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