This two-attorney personal injury firm in the Chicagoland area had heard about offshore staffing, mostly stories about the Philippines. They weren't against it. They just weren't sure it applied to them. Their work was too specific. Too legal. Too dependent on real judgment.
Car accidents. Wrongful death. Medical malpractice. Cases that require research at the level of a trained legal mind, not someone filling in templates or scheduling calls. They came to our first meeting with open minds and a quiet concern: what if nobody offshore can actually do what we need?
Juliane Barroncas, our client success lead, ran the first meeting with the firm. She came back and did something most staffing companies never do, she didn't immediately reach for a candidate profile. She brought the conversation internally first.
Our team sat down with Leonardo, a Brazilian-trained attorney and part of our internal team, to pressure-test what this firm actually needed. Leonardo's read was immediate: "This isn't a VA role. This is a legal role. They need someone who researches like an attorney, understands US case law, and can manage caseload, not just support it."
When we went back to the firm with our finding, that we wanted to place a licensed attorney, not a VA, they were surprised. And then they were concerned about cost. That's when we told them the price.
Juliane brought Vibor, our head of recruitment, into the search. The brief was precise: a bar-certified attorney from Brazil, with direct exposure to US legal frameworks, capable of working independently alongside a US trial attorney.
This wasn't a task list. This was a scope that grew the moment the attorneys saw what was possible:
Within the first month, the firm's onshore attorneys stopped spending mornings reviewing and correcting research. Briefs arrived ready to use. Case preparation was done to the standard a courtroom demands. The US attorneys were finally free to do what only they can do, argue cases, serve clients, and win.
The Brazilian attorney worked behind the scenes not as a support function but as a genuine legal contributor. Someone who understood the cases. Who could think through them. Who brought the same rigor to research that the onshore team brought to the courtroom. Case capacity grew by 40%, with zero new US hires and zero expansion of overhead.
The AI video capability was the surprise no planned for. The firm now has a steady stream of educational legal content, produced by someone who understands the law well enough to explain it accurately on camera, using AI tools to create and publish it independently.
And the investment? Comparable to what they would have paid for a general VA anywhere else. Except this wasn't a VA. This was a licensed attorney. That gap, between what you pay and what you actually get, is exactly what we exist to find.
We weren't looking for a virtual assistant. We were looking for someone who could think. Simpalm found us someone who already thought like a lawyer, because they are one. That's a different category of hire entirely.
Running a legal practice and need support that can think, not just execute?
Talk to our team →Profiles submitted within 48 hours of your first call. Fully placed within 10 days. No upfront fees. 30-day fit guarantee.
