Bett Sundermeyer, CP

Houston, TX – 713-***-****

adzt7i@r.postjobfree.com - www.linkedin.com/in/bett-sundermeyer SUMMARY

Certified Paralegal with 35 years’ experience. 24 years’ experience in the Legal Departments of large corporations, including 18 years at a Fortune 500 company, handling diverse matters such as real estate, right of way and remediation contract drafting and review, contract template creation and management, regulatory compliance, oil and gas, and General Data Privacy Regulations; and 11 years’ experience in both plaintiff and defense litigation firms in diverse legal domains such as product liability, personal injury, medical malpractice, environmental, toxic tort, labor and employment and ADA. Expert in conducting legal research, managing complex litigation and large-scale document productions / e-Discovery projects with a proven record of optimizing processes. Experience in the following areas:

Real Estate Law Attention to Detail & Accuracy Client Communication

Contract Drafting and Review Complex Litigation Witness Interview

Database Development Case Management Time Management

Regulatory Compliance Legal Research and Analysis Organizational Skills

Process Improvement Legal Document Preparation s Teamwork & Collaboration

Environmental Compliance E-Discovery Relationship Building PROFESSIONAL

EXPERIENCE

Paralegal - Independent Contractor March 2023 – Present Working to further skills and areas of expertise while searching for next position

Currently enrolled in training class pursuing Texas Real Estate License

Phillips 66 Company / ConocoPhillips - Houston, TX August 2004 – November 2022 Phillips 66 is an oil and gas, refining, downstream, midstream, chemical and emerging energy company ConocoPhillips is an upstream oil and gas company

Paralegal

Provided dedicated support to attorneys and clients in the Real Estate and Remediation departments, contributing to the adept handling of complex cases and facilitating property transactions and environmental compliance.

Drove enhancements in real estate services, right of way, remediation and legal performance through active participation in a cross-departmental process improvement team focused on creating and refining template contracts.

Mastered an array of new technologies, enabling efficient document sharing and co-authoring for research, FERC Interlocking reports, and the creation of real estate, right of way and remediation template databases.

Orchestrated a collaborative effort with colleagues and the corporate group to prepare and file yearly FERC Interlocking reports for all officers and directors of Phillips 66, averting substantial fines through diligent compliance.

Authored well-crafted legal hold orders, safeguarding legal obligations and preserving crucial documents and evidence.

Executed astute legal research utilizing LexisNexis and Lexis Advance, keeping abreast of legal developments and gaining valuable insights to inform case strategies.

Engaged proactively with outside counsel to furnish essential information and documents for discovery requests, streamlining the legal process and ensuring timely compliance.

Played an integral role in supporting attorneys specializing in various types of litigation such as superfund, oil and gas, personal injury, anti-trust and ADA discrimination law, ensuring thorough case preparation and legal research.

Efficiently managed and directed teams of paralegals for large-scale document coding and production / e-Discovery projects, optimizing team resources for maximum productivity.

Implemented incisive interviewing techniques with witnesses and employees in-person and via Net Meeting, gathering crucial information and documents, including electronic documents, to preserve evidence and support legal cases.

Researched third party contracts and revised them to comply with General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR).

El Paso Corporation – Houston, TX December 2002 – August 2004 An oil and gas, natural gas and related energy products company

Paralegal

Offered comprehensive paralegal support to a diverse team of attorneys specializing in litigation, employment law, toxic tort, personal injury, contract, and oil and gas law, ensuring effective legal representation and case management.

Fostered strong relationships with outside counsel, facilitating the seamless provision of information and documents necessary for responding to discovery requests.

Conducted incisive interviews with witnesses and employees, playing a critical role in gathering first-hand information and building a robust foundation for legal cases.

Expertly compiled electronic and hard copy documents for large-scale productions, streamlining the availability of essential records for litigation and case proceedings.

Orchestrated the imaging and cataloging of document productions in Summation, employing a meticulous approach to ensure the accuracy and accessibility of legal documents.

Performed thorough investigations into accident cases, collating vital evidence and information to build compelling arguments and support the legal team in achieving favorable outcomes.

Pennzoil-Quaker State Company – Houston, TX March 1998 – October 2002 An oil related products company

Paralegal

Provided multifaceted paralegal support to the Vice President of Legal, HR, and Environmental and additional attorneys specializing in labor and employment law, and assisted the EEO attorney and EEO Director, ensuring streamlined legal operations.

Developed and maintained a litigation management database, enabling the generation of semi-annual litigation reports, insurance reports, and a docketing system that enhanced the organization's legal tracking capabilities.

Initiated and managed comprehensive databases for tracking large-scale document productions, EEO charges, hotline complaints, union grievances, arbitration outcomes, and OSHA safety violations, ensuring effective monitoring and reporting of critical legal information.

Created a database for departmental cost tracking and was instrumental in preparing monthly and annual budget forecasts, contributing to financial prudence and allocation efficiency within the legal department.

Collaborated proactively with outside counsel to furnish information required for discovery, ensuring timely and thorough responses and facilitating efficient legal processes.

Conducted extensive legal research using Westlaw, continuously monitoring and disseminating updates on pertinent employment law and safety regulations, thus aiding the company in maintaining compliance and staying abreast of legislative changes.

Revolutionized the company’s policy dissemination process by designing a modern format for company policies and converting them to web pages for posting on the company intranet, resulting in significant savings in time and expenses compared to traditional hard copy distribution.

Bush, Burck & Lapidus – Houston, TX August 1997 – March 1998 An insurance defense law firm

Paralegal

Drafted pleadings, discovery and responses to same

Investigated cases, maintaining contact with clients, insurance adjusters and expert witnesses

Prepared cases for trial, including preparation of trial notebooks, witness notebooks and exhibits

Performed research utilizing Westlaw, Accutrak and the Internet

McFall, Sherwood & Sheehy – Houston, TX April 1994-August 1997 A product liability, personal injury, toxic tort and medical malpractice litigation law firm Paralegal

Conducted large-scale document productions at major client corporations

Designed databases to track pleadings, discovery responses, deposition and trial transcripts and used to compare discovery responses of law firms country wide, representing the same client to assure consistency of responses

Combined and organized extensive medical research literature databases

Restructured databases used in large document productions to establish better searching capabilities; supervised a group of paralegals entering document summaries into the database

Performed legal research

Kroll & Tract – Houston, TX November 1993-April 1994 An insurance defense litigation law firm

Paralegal

Drafted pleadings, discovery and responses

Investigated cases

Interfaced with insurance adjusters and clients

Summarized depositions and medical records

Hughes, Watters & Askanase – Houston, TX December 1987-November 1993 A plaintiff’s personal injury and insurance subrogation litigation law firm Paralegal

Drafted pleadings, discovery and responses

Investigated cases, maintaining contact with clients

Summarized depositions and medical records

Created and maintained several case management and expert databases for over 3,000 files

Designed various specialized reports using the databases

Trained personnel in the use of various databases

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