After 31 years as an attorney focusing primarily on family law, DeAnne Coan traded the courtroom for the classroom, becoming South Piedmont’s Paralegal Technology program lead in January 2022.
In the two years since she made that career transition, she’s worked to revamp the Paralegal Technology program curriculum to ensure it aligns with both student and employer needs. Case in point: Later this year, the program will begin offering Case Analysis and Legal Research II, both designed to help students better understand legal concepts and develop as legal researchers. South Piedmont also now offers an associate degree, diploma, and certificate in Paralegal Technology, each designed for students with different educational and professional aspirations. Learn more about the Paralegal Technology pathways here.
In addition to making her impact on South Piedmont’s Paralegal Technology program, Coan is also aiming to reshape the perception of paralegals.
“A lot of people think of paralegals as filling a secretarial role. That is not true. Paralegals are legal professionals. The paralegal field is still also thought of as being very ‘pink collar.’ This is a great field for both men and women,” she said.
She’s doing all this while still doing what she loves most: traveling.
Here are five things to know about Coan.
She began considering a career in law because of the hit TV show, “LA Law.”
The show, which ran for eight seasons beginning in the late 1980s, starred Jimmy Smits and Harry Hamlin, but it was the female characters that captivated Coan’s interest. “That was the first show that featured strong female lawyers. Susan Dey was one of the actresses. She played a lawyer, and I loved watching her go to court in her suits. That show got me thinking about a career in law because it showed women working as lawyers and judges. I’d never seen that before then.”
She’s a double Tar Heel – and a trailblazer.
Coan earned both her undergraduate degree in political science and her law degree from the University of North Carolina. Her first job was as a real estate attorney in Wake County, but in 1990, she relocated to Union County to be closer to family. At the time, she was just one of two females working in private practice in the area. She started out taking court-appointed work, but soon carved out a niche in family law.
Educating paralegals is her way of advancing the legal profession.
After 30 years as a lawyer, Coan knows firsthand just how valuable paralegals are to any legal practice. “A lot of people think they can save money by hiring someone and training them to be a paralegal or legal assistant,” Coan said. I’ll say this to any attorney: You will be more successful if you have a well-trained staff in place. Lawyers are very busy people. It’s their paralegals who keep the practice running on a day-to-day basis.” As South Piedmont’s Paralegal Technology lead, Coan strives to produce highly trained paralegals who can serve as their attorneys’ right hands. “My goal is that when a lawyer hires a South Piedmont Paralegal Technology graduate, they’re hiring someone who knows how to interact with clients, who isn’t going to be out there giving unauthorized advice, who knows how to conduct legal research and write legal memoranda, who is going to know what the lawyer needs before he or she even has to ask for it.”
She’s a world traveler.
Coan’s passport is full of stamps from around the world. She’s climbed the Great Wall of China, hiked Hawaii’s Diamond Head volcano, climbed Jamaica’s River Falls, and toured the Acropolis – to name just a few of her adventures. Her next stop? “It’s touristy, but I want to kiss the Blarney Stone in Ireland,” she said.
Her students inspire her every day.
“I’m in awe of my students and the things they’re able to do,” Coan said. “I had one student who would attend class online during her breaks at a restaurant. She’d literally be sitting in a cooler in the back of the restaurant taking my class on her computer. I have adult students who log in to class while their kids are running around in the background, and I have high schoolers who are taking very challenging courses. Our students should never doubt themselves or sell themselves short. They can do amazing things.”