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To lawyers, Grencik unmatched in her work

By: Alison Henderson//November 30, 2017//

To lawyers, Grencik unmatched in her work

By: Alison Henderson//November 30, 2017//

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Kim Grencik - Boardman & Clark (Staff photo by Kevin Harnack)
Kim Grencik – Boardman & Clark (Staff photo by Kevin Harnack)

When a client starts asking the legal assistant for advice, you know you’re in good hands.

Of course, it doesn’t hurt that this specific legal assistant, Kim Grencik, has 40 years of experience in the legal field, or that she has a level of professionalism and accuracy that is unmatched, according to her colleagues.

Grencik has worked at Boardman & Clark since 2008. The many people she has assisted during that time include the lawyers Tess O’Brien-Heinzen, Julia Potter and Frank Sutherland.

Sutherland said many people at the firm would consider Grencik to be among the very best assistants, largely because she operates at a higher level, one they might expect from paralegals.

“It would be a huge setback to my practice if I had to work with someone else,” said Sutherland, who is a partner in the firm and has worked closely with Grencik for roughly a decade.

As a legal assistant, she is responsible for dictation, taking messages from clients and drafting documents, such as letters. As a legal assistant who goes above and beyond, however, Grencik helps with business, real estate and estate planning, drafting documents such as wills, financial powers and health-care powers. She often takes on lawyers’ billable work at no extra cost to keep services affordable to the firm’s clients.

“Preparing, organizing, phone calls, emails – anything that would basically be a charge, I’ll do so attorneys can cut back on the work,” she said. “I prefer it that way.”

Sutherland said he and his colleagues have to try to persuade Grencik to take a lunch and frequently find her staying late to get work done.

All that and she’s an excellent proofreader, often finding flaws in documents that the lawyers have missed.

“I’m always ahead of the game to keep the clients happy and get the work done on time,” she said.

Grencik has developed a good rapport not only with the firm but also with the clients. Sutherland said Grencik is the go-to when clients need help fast because they are so comfortable with her and they know she can help them.

“I like the work itself, and the attorneys I work for and the clients. You get to learn about people’s lives and you get to meet them,” she said. “I have a lot of direct contact with the clients. I’ve been with them 10 years and they usually call me first for help.”

Grencik is an honest, humble, reliable and reserved employee who brings a good attitude to the workplace.

“You just do your work,” she said. “Everybody has their bad days but they won’t see my bad days. I leave it at home.”

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