Attorney Spotlight: Dana Romaniuk, Paragon Legal Attorney

In this Attorney Spotlight, Attorney Development Associate Dana Shaker sits down with Paragon attorney Dana Romaniuk to discuss her experience supporting in-house legal teams through project-based and interim legal roles.

Dana shares how she approaches onboarding quickly at new clients, building trust with stakeholders, and tackling novel legal challenges. She also shares her take on using AI tools responsibly in a client environment, and what’s kept her energized about legal work throughout her career.

Watch to hear why Dana’s clients never want the engagement to end.

Read the Full Conversation

Prefer reading over watching? Below is the complete transcript from our Attorney Spotlight interview with Dana Romaniuk, Paragon Legal Attorney.

Dana Shaker: Welcome, Dana. We’re so excited to have you for this Paragon Spotlight today. Thank you so much for making the time.

Dana Romaniuk: Thank you for asking me. I’m excited to be spotlighted.

Dana Shaker: What is one thing, either personally or professionally, that you would want every client to know about you?

Dana Romaniuk: I will make their work life easier, and they will not want the engagement to end.

Dana Shaker: I love that answer. That’s every client’s dream.

Dana Shaker: Tell me about a time when you really had to dig in and get the work done. What did stepping up look like in that moment?

Dana Romaniuk: I was working at a company that was 100 years old, and they had retained everything—every document, going back decades. I was tasked with drafting and rolling out a document retention program, which was initially met with significant pushback from stakeholders who were used to having access to all of their data at all times. My approach was to meet with each department separately, listen to their concerns, and make adjustments for each team. Then I worked with IT to draft and successfully implement the policy. In the end, the stakeholders were actually happy to have less data to manage.

Dana Shaker: That’s amazing. When you can bring your experience and expertise to see the problems others can’t see, and find the more efficient path forward—that’s one of the real value adds of having an experienced attorney on a project.

Dana Shaker: Tell me about a time when you had to figure out something completely new to you. How did you approach it, and what did you take away from the experience?

Dana Romaniuk: I was working at a company where a customer had declared bankruptcy, and the bankruptcy trustee came after us to recoup money the customer had paid us, claiming it wasn’t paid in due course. I had never dealt with bankruptcy law before, so I did a lot of research and drafted a defense. The trustee accepted most of it, and we ended up paying back only a very small amount. After that experience, I’m not afraid to tackle any new legal issue. You do the research, you put in the time, and you can find a successful solution.

Dana Shaker: That’s one of the great advantages of having an experienced project-based attorney—you’ve seen so many different things throughout your career. You know how to get in the weeds and figure it out as you go. That’s such a valuable skill.

Dana Romaniuk: And it’s a good challenge. Learning new areas of law and becoming an expert in something new—that’s something I genuinely enjoy.

Dana Shaker: In project work, you’re often the new person on the team. What do you do to make those first few days go smoothly?

Dana Romaniuk: I always start by meeting with the company attorneys I’ll be working with to discuss their risk tolerance and request all relevant policies, templates, and training materials—including anything that helps me understand their products or services. I also make sure I have access to relevant systems, like contract management platforms. And I discuss preferences upfront: How do they want me to escalate issues? Do they want to meet weekly or only when something comes up? Getting those housekeeping matters settled early is what really makes an engagement run smoothly.

Dana Shaker: I love that you’ve really got that transition period down, because learning how to step into a new company and integrate quickly is genuinely a skill.

Dana Romaniuk: It becomes second nature when you’ve been doing it with Paragon for as many years as I have. You just learn how to start fresh.

Dana Shaker: What do you genuinely enjoy about being a project-based attorney?

Dana Romaniuk: I love the variety. You get to work with many different clients across different industries, and you’re constantly learning—from the companies you work with, and they learn from you too. I find it more energizing than staying with one client for a long period of time. Though I’ve done that as well, and there’s value in that too.

Dana Shaker: What do you like about working with Paragon specifically?

Dana Romaniuk: I started with Paragon when it was just Mae O’Malley, the founder, and two employees. Even though Paragon has grown tremendously since then, I still have meaningful relationships with most of the team. That’s very different from some of Paragon’s competitors, where it’s hundreds and hundreds of people. The work is challenging, the clients are great, and the management and executive team genuinely look out for the attorneys. They make it a great place to work.

Dana Shaker: Paragon has certainly changed, but I’m so glad the care for our team members and clients is still at the heart of it all. Thank you so much, Dana, for taking the time to chat with me today. We’re excited for our clients to check out this video.