Unauthorized Practice of Law by Legal Assistants and Paralegals Research Paper

Unauthorized Practice of Law by Legal Assistants and Para statutorys - Research Paper ExampleThe ABA adopted in 1997 the following definition A ratified assistant or paralegal is a person qualified by education, training or work experience who is use or retained by a attorney, law office, corporation, governmental agency or other entity who performs specifically delegated substantive legal work for which a lawyer is responsible. The ABA adopted in 1997 the following definition A legal assistant or paralegal is a person qualified by education, training or work experience who is employed or retained by a lawyer, law office, corporation, governmental agency or other entity who performs specifically delegated substantive legal work for which a lawyer is responsible. According to the National Association of Legal Assistants, or NALA, certain standard determines the qualifications of a paralegal (http//www.nala.org/98model.htm). To be accredited a paralegal or legal assistant, one has t o undertake the following 1. Successful completion of the Certified Legal Assistant (CLA)/Certified Paralegal (CP) certifying examination of the National Association of Legal Assistants, Inc.2. kickoff from an ABA approved a program of study for legal assistants3. Graduation from a course of study for legal assistants which is institutionally accredited but non ABA approved, and which requires non less than the equivalent of 60 semester hours of classroom study4. Graduation from a course of study for legal assistants, other than those set forth in (2) and (3) above, add-on not less than six months of in-house training as a legal assistant5. A baccalaureate degree in any field, plus not less than six months in-house training as a legal assistant6. A minimum of three years of law-related experience under the supervision of an attorney, including at least six months of in-house training as a legal assistant or7. Two years of in-house training as a legal assistant. For purposes of t hese Standards, in-house training as a legal assistant means attorney education of the employee concerning legal assistant duties. In addition to the review and analysis of assignments, the legal assistant should stupefy a reasonable amount of instruction directly related to the duties and obligations of the legal assistant.