Senior Litigation Legal Assistant
Mary Miernik earned her Legal Secretarial Diploma (with Honours) in Calgary in 1985. She was recruited by James Crawford, Q.C. at the firm McDonald Hayden in June 1985 until August of 1994, in a general law practice. While working with James Crawford, she earned her Legal Assistant Certificate from the Red Deer College in 1994, by attending night classes through SAIT in Calgary.
She then moved on and accepted a position with a Calgary law firm as a senior legal assistant, primarily in their litigation department, but also handled their corporate department, assisted with wills and estates, and handled real estate deals for firm clients until 1998. She then wanted to become more specialized, so she accepted a position with a boutique litigation firm in Calgary as a senior legal assistant and worked in this very busy personal injury and disability law practice until 2005.
In 2013, Mary made the move to Red Deer with her husband, to be closer to their grandchildren. She really wanted to get back to working in a law firm, which has always been her passion.
In May of 2018, Mary met with Donna Purcell, and she was immediately impressed with Ms. Purcell’s knowledge of the law, her organizational skills, office procedures, and the virtual aspect of her law practice. She knew it would be a new challenge for her, but even old dogs can learn new tricks! She accepted a position as a legal assistant with her firm. Mary continues to work with Ms. Purcell on a contract basis and enjoys assisting her and the staff at Donna Purcell QC Law.
When she is not working, Mary enjoys spending time with her husband, teaching her granddaughter how to cook, bake and sew, long walks with her dogs, and spending time with her daughter, son, and their families.