Welcome to Paralegal Part I, the first half of the Paralegal Certificate Course © offered online. This online course represents the culmination of thirty (30) years of “live” classroom instruction of this course for liberal arts and pre-law students at major universities across the United States.
No paralegal wants to bear the responsibility of an attorney in their firm getting hit with a malpractice case, so accurate and diligent calendaring is always something that weighs heavy on the mind of paralegals. Gabrielle told us that her boss often says… ‘Just about every mistake we make is fixable except for calendars.
Child Protection: Children’s Rights in Theory and Practice is a free online course offered by Harvard University via edX. It’s ideal for the paralegal working in family law. This beginner-level online class discusses: The course is 100% online, offers flexible deadlines, and takes about 1-3 hours per week for 28 weeks.
Most continuing legal education programs qualify. These may include teaching in a paralegal program; attending conferences, seminars, and webinars offered by NALA and other professional organizations; completing classes through an accredited college or university; or achieving an advanced paralegal certification credential.
Currently, these three organizations offer professional certification options, both at the basic and advanced levels: NALA: The Paralegal Associati...
No, the paralegal profession continues to be unregulated; therefore, whether at the state or national level, professional certification remains a v...
A couple of the certification agencies have conducted surveys that show that their certified members earn more on average than paralegals without c...
Many paralegals pursue their primary professional certification immediately upon earning a paralegal degree. However, you can pursue professional c...
No, not necessarily. You can qualify for primary certification through experience or a combination of experience and education in most cases. NALA,...
Yes, NALA’s certified paralegals earn either the certified paralegal (CP) designation or the advanced certified paralegal (ACP) designation in a le...
Yes, NALS, NALA, and the NFPA all require that paralegals maintain their professional certification through continuing education. This includes tak...
No, it isn’t a requirement, but it is common and it does come with benefits. Many paralegals find that membership in a professional organization af...
Certification through NALS is $150 for members and $200 for non-members. Certification through NALA is $250 for members and $272 for non-members. C...
This class is an introduction to the court system and the many types of research tools and methods used in a law office. Students study the law lib...
History and nature of law, with emphasis placed on the role of the paralegal. Introductory survey of substantive and procedural law. Relationships...
Students learn the principles of criminal accountability and the constitutional and procedural protections provided to an accused person. The cours...
Civil jurisprudence and investigative techniques are studied in this class. Throughout the course, students learn to combine an understanding of ba...
Theory of this subject is understood by utilizing the code and textual material. The law of Wills is studied, and students learn to produce a writt...
Students study various forms of business organizations and laws affecting business organizations. Subjects covered include sole proprietorships, pa...
In this course, students gain a basic understanding of legal protection given to works of authorship, trade secrets, trademarks, and patents. Stude...
This course covers the specific computer applications and techniques utilized in today’s modern law office. Students learn the function and utility...
This demanding course is designed to prepare students for the rigors of civil litigation. Course topics include post discovery motions and pleas, a...
This course further develops the research and writing skills learned in LAW 1300 Legal Research and Writing. Students conduct more detailed legal r...
Some states offer their own certification process in order to encourage high standards of professionalism, to help employers identify qualified employees, and to ensure that their state’s paralegals have a solid knowledge base when it comes to state law.
Complete a paralegal program that includes at least 60 semester hours, of which at least 15 semester hours are in substantive legal courses; OR. Graduate from a bachelor’s degree in any field and have at least one year of paralegal experience; must also include at least 15 semester hours of substantive legal courses.
This means that any paralegal with a qualifying education is eligible to take certification exams at this level. There are three entry-level or early-career examinations available to paralegals: The CRP (Core Registered Paralegal) offered through NFPA. The CP (Certified Paralegal) offered through NALA.
Primary generalist certification for entry and mid-level paralegals cover core competencies- Basic certification for entry-level paralegals or those still early in their careers, cover paralegal core competencies like procedural law, substantive law, written communication, verbal communication, ethics, preparation of legal documents and law office technology.
The Association for Legal Professionals (NALS) Professional Paralegal (PP) – $150 for NALS members or $200 for non-members. Specialty Certification (SC) – $150 for members or $200 for non-members. Additional costs would include things like non-refundable application fees (typically $25-$50).
In a largely unregulated profession with few state licensing or registration requirements, professional certification has become the standard of excellence that many paralegals strive for and that many employers demand.
The CP credential is good for 5 years. Renewal is based on the completion of at least 50 hours of continuing legal education, including at least 5 hours in legal ethics. Most continuing legal education programs qualify. These may include teaching in a paralegal program; attending conferences, seminars, and webinars offered by NALA and other professional organizations; completing classes through an accredited college or university; or achieving an advanced paralegal certification credential.
Ethical issues, such as attorney advertising, unauthorized practice of law, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, and other practical aspects of et hics are covered.
This advanced civil discovery course is designed for students to learn and apply current e-Discovery concepts and procedures required in modern civil discovery and complex litigation. Legal disputes increasingly require the collection and analysis of electronically stored information (ESI) as part of the discovery phase of litigation, and corporations must meet certain electronic information requirements to mitigate risk and expense. In this course, students learn to apply the Electronic Data Reference Model (EDRM) to properly manage the various stages of e-Discovery including information management, identification, preservation and collection, review and analysis, production and presentation. Students will learn to use e-Discovery software and tools and apply this understanding to real world case scenarios through projects requiring the application of case management systems. Students also demonstrate knowledge of case law relating to e-Discovery issues in various projects and assignments. 45/3/0/3#N#Prerequisites: LAW1307 Civil Procedure and LAW1300 Legal Research and Writing
Subjects covered include sole proprietorships, partnerships, corporations, limited liability companies, and the law of agency. Students learn to prepare documents necessary. to create each form of business organization including the incorporation of business.
Externships are designed to give each student practical, on-the-job experience by working with an attorney, judge, legal department of a corporation, or other law-related business. Students learn to apply the skills and knowledge obtained in the classroom to everyday situations, resulting in an equally beneficial relationship between a student extern and his or her supervisor. Externships are offered during a student’s final term. (0/0/96/2)
Some best practices for law office calendaring include having concrete rules in place for: Calendaring events listed on docket sheets received from the Court. When you work in a busy law office, you might receive several notices from the Court each day about new filings, deadlines, and scheduled hearings.
Everyone in the office should know whose responsibility synchronizing the calendars is, when it should be done, and who will do if the elected person is out of the office on any given day.
According to the American Bar Association (“ABA”), roughly 13% of malpractice claim errors are related to improper calendaring (See The Most Common Legal Malpractice Claims by Types of Alleged Error ). If you’ve worked as a paralegal for very long you have almost certainly missed a deadline and your boss has probably missed a hearing or two as well. It happens. But it doesn’t have to. Good calendar management takes the right calendaring software and a proven system for tracking appointments, deadlines, and court appearances – and you can have both by the end of the day!
Outlook allows users to calendar appointments, events, meetings, and tasks, so that you know in a glance what your schedule is like for any given day. You can also calendar recurring events such as client billing dates, set reminders for any entry, and color code entries according to categories that you choose.
You can share one calendar or match up individual calendars throughout the day. 2. Google Calendars. Google allows users to create several different calendars, share them with others, set reminders, color code events, invite guests, and sync calendars with mobile devices.
Anyone who calculates and calendars a deadline should include their initials in the entry, so that everyone can be held accountable for their math and calendar entries. Scheduling appointments with clients, potential clients, and other attorneys.
Paralegal Certificate Course© – Online. Students have 14 weeks to complete the online course (7 weeks for paralegal I and 7 weeks for paralegal II).
The entire course, Paralegal I and Paralegal II, runs 14 weeks; seven weeks for the first half (Paralegal I) and seven weeks for the second half ( Paralegal II). NOTE: To receive your Paralegal Certificate, students must enroll in, and successfully complete both halves of the course (Paralegal I and Paralegal II).
Coursework in Paralegal II is equivalent to 45 clock hours of study.
The course is 100% online, offers flexible deadlines, and takes about 1-3 hours per week for 28 weeks. Online Course Website.
Creative Problem Solving is a free online course offered by University of Minnesota via Coursera. It’s ideal for anyone who must think critically, including paralegals. This helpful online class uses:
Logic is an important skill for anyone working in the field of law, and that makes this free online course a must-do for any paralegal. It’s offered by Stanford University via Coursera. Introduction to Logic introduces students to:
We asked 6,724 job seekers about their Paralegal Certificate. This is what they told us:
We asked 6,724 job seekers about their Paralegal Certificate. This is what they told us: