Stone | Dean’s Quarterly RAVE Award Honors Dana Leland and Nicole Montes!

Jointly demonstrating a commitment to excellence and our firm’s core values, Stone | Dean is proud to announce our RAVE Award winners for the last two quarters of 2019. Our 2019 Q2 winner is Dana Leland, legal assistant works primarily with Gregory E. Stone and Leslie Blozan.  Our Q2 winner is law clerk extraordinaire, who provides legal support wherever/whenever needed.   Both recipients received “rave” reviews from their peers:

Dana is Stone | Dean’s newest shining star.  She is has been with the firm for almost two years as our senior paralegal.  She handles a significant caseload with grace, charm and efficiency.  Even with the challenge of a heavy litigation desk, she excels with superior work product, amazing leadership skills to others, and is an example of integrity, professionalism and teamwork.   We are so lucky to have her!

Peer Praise for Dana:

“She is well-liked by her coworkers and is a leader.  She always has a smile on her face even when “totally buried.”  She is friendly to all, has a great sense of humor and is dedicated.”

“Dana is always professional and willing to help.  She is ready to assist right away and handles any situation.  She is confident in her work, always smiling, happy and wants to give advice and listen to ideas.”

“Dana adheres to the firm’s core values every day. Dana communicates well with both staff and attorneys with kindness and positivity. She always presents a smile on her face and is in high spirits even when she is flustered. Her positive attitude and professionalism is what makes her both a great employee and great person. If she does not know how to do something she will ask. If she sees that one of her coworkers is under some stress she will offer a lending hand wherever she can.”

“Deadlines and countless amounts of paperwork can be stressful, but Dana handles it with such enthusiasm and projects a smile on her face no matter what (even when a client is being [difficult] or [impolite] in an email.) I admire her professionalism and her willingness to help others in a time of need. I also respect the fact, like myself, we may not always know the answers or how to do certain things, but she will take the opportunity to ask questions and/or learn how to do it rather than “assign” someone else to do it.”

Nicole has worked as a law clerk for Stone | Dean for three years while working her way through law school.  That alone is a monumental task worthy of praise.  Despite her demands outside of work, Nicole exceeds all our expectations in her work product as she cultivates her skills as a soon-to-be lawyer and demonstrates every day that she is a skilled and valued team member at Stone | Dean.   We are so proud of her!!

Colleague Compliments for Nicole:

“Nicole goes above and beyond by taking initiative to pick up the slack of other support staff, whatever the task may be. Nicole consistently displays leadership by following up on various tasks (whether assigned to her or not) to make sure that the job gets done.  Nicole is always willing to help and never complains.  She NEVER has an attitude to the effect that something is not her job.  She consistently delivers high quality work.  She is a go-getter and completes tasks timely with excellent results.”

“Nicole is always a team player and strives to remain positive even in stressful situations. She takes pride in the work product she produces and always asks questions in order to ensure she is growing and learning. Nicole takes initiative by offering assistance to help the team meet deadlines and produce a superior work product. She takes her time to make sure the work she is doing is great and takes initiative to always learn new things.”

“Nicole is always first to offer her assistance when she sees a high stress situation or when she has a lighter workload. She requires minimal guidance and will pick up and immediately turn the task around. She also is eager to offer her assistance to those who are not as familiar with certain tasks.  Nicole is able to demonstrate leadership by taking on and successfully completing the tasks she has been requested to complete.”

“Nicole always looks at the bright side of things and always has a smile on her face. If something was ever bothering her, you wouldn’t really know it.”