Attorney Intake
FOR LICENSED ATTORNEYS ONLY

Your Caseload Keeps Growing.
Your Time Doesn't.

First Paralegal provides substantive contract paralegal support: research, drafting, discovery, and litigation assistance, integrated directly into your existing workflow without the overhead of adding staff. Virtual and based in San Diego, serving attorneys throughout Southern California.
  • No retainer · No minimums · Billed in 6-minute increments · Invoiced 1st & 15th
Start Attorney Intake
See How It Works
THE PROBLEM

Where Attorney Time Gets Consumed

Most solo and small firm attorneys spend significant time on paralegal-level work not because they prefer it, but because reliable, experienced support has not been easy to find. The result is high-value attorney time going toward tasks that don’t require it, while billable work and client demands compete for what’s left.

High-value time spent on paralegal-level work

Research, drafting, and discovery need to happen accurately and on deadline, but they don't need to happen at attorney billing rates.

In-house hiring isn't always practical

A full-time paralegal means salary, benefits, payroll taxes, onsite space, and ongoing management, even during slow periods and between matters.

Backlog builds faster than it clears

Active caseloads don't pause. When substantive work falls behind, everything follows: client responsiveness, discovery timelines, motion practice.

THE ALTERNATIVE
Contract paralegal support structured around how your practice actually works.

First Paralegal handles defined paralegal assignments under your direction and within your existing workflow, so work keeps moving without adding permanent overhead or changing how you operate.

  • Task-based with clearly defined scope
  • Work delivered draft-ready for attorney review
  • Billing tied to actual time worked, not fixed costs
  • Scale support up or down as caseload demands change
  • Paralegal time is billable to the client
HOW IT WORKS

A Clear, Repeatable Workflow

Once engaged, support follows a consistent process designed to keep work moving efficiently without disrupting your firm’s existing operations.

Submit the Assignment
Send tasks by email with instructions, relevant documents, and deadlines. Any clarification is resolved before work begins.
Work Is Prepared

Assignments are handled based on your instruction: research, drafting, discovery, or document review, with accuracy and deadlines prioritized throughout.

Delivered for Review
Completed work is delivered by email in draft form, clearly labeled and organized for your review. Approve it, request revisions, or adjust priorities as the matter evolves.
Revisions and Follow-Up

Feedback is incorporated promptly. If revisions are needed or follow-up tasks arise, those are handled based on your direction before the assignment is considered complete.

CORE SERVICES

Substantive Work Attorneys Can Delegate

The following covers the types of paralegal work most commonly delegated by solo and small firm attorneys during active matters.

Legal Research

Case law, statutory and regulatory research, issue spotting, and organized research memos ready for use in motions, briefs, and active matters.

Drafting and Document Preparation

Pleadings, motions, contracts, agreements, and discovery requests and responses, drafted to your specification and formatted for attorney review.

Discovery and Litigation Support

Discovery preparation and organization, medical record review, document summaries, and litigation support from early case through trial preparation.

Ongoing Case Support

Recurring paralegal assistance across multiple active matters, available for sustained caseload support or overflow during high-volume periods.

Practice Areas Supported
Support is available across a range of civil practice areas, adapted to the procedural complexity and document demands of each matter.
  • Civil Litigation
  • Personal Injury
  • Real Estate
  • Business and Contract Disputes
  • Employment Matters
  • Trademark and IP
Carla Navarro - First Paralegal
Carla Navarro, CP

Founder | NALA Certified Paralegal

MEET CARLA NAVARRO, CP

NALA-Certified Paralegal Serving Southern California Attorneys Since 2016

Carla Navarro is a NALA-certified paralegal (CP) who graduated with honors from the University of San Diego’s paralegal program in 2014. She began her legal career in 2006 and has since built deep experience across civil litigation firms, corporate in-house roles, and small-to-mid-sized practices throughout Southern California, supporting discovery and motion practice, contract drafting, real estate matters, trademark work, and document-intensive litigation. She founded First Paralegal in 2016 to provide dedicated, substantive contract paralegal support exclusively to solo practitioners and boutique law firms. She is fully bilingual in English and Spanish and regularly works with bilingual records and communications under attorney direction.
FLEXIBLE SUPPORT

Support Structured Around Your Practice

Attorneys work with First Paralegal in different ways depending on caseload, staffing, and the nature of the work. All arrangements are task-based with no long-term commitment required.
Ongoing / Long-Term Support
Recurring paralegal assistance across multiple active matters. Support continues as cases evolve, with priorities adjusted as deadlines shift and new assignments come in.
Project-Based Support
Engagement scoped to a specific phase: discovery preparation, motion drafting, document review, or a single defined matter, with a clear start and end point.
Overflow / Deadline-Driven Support
Additional capacity during peak workloads or when urgent deadlines compress the schedule. Engage when volume demands it, step back when it doesn’t.
Why Contract Support

Contract Paralegal Support vs. Hiring In-House

Hiring internally brings permanent overhead for a workload that fluctuates. Contract support gives you experienced paralegal capacity when you need it, without the fixed cost structure when you don’t.
FactorIn-House ParalegalFirst Paralegal
Salary and overhead✗ Fixed annual cost✓ Time worked only
Benefits and payroll taxes✗ Required✓ Not applicable
Cost during slow periods✗ Full salary continues✓ No work, no bill
Scalability✗ Difficult to adjust✓ Scales with caseload
Long-term commitment✗ Required✓ None required
Client-billable✓ Yes✓ Yes