Chapter 2

Membership Has Its Privileges: Paralegal Associations and Their Certification Exams

IN THIS CHAPTER

Bullet Figuring out whether to join a paralegal association

Bullet Determining whether getting certified is worthwhile

Some of the decisions you make when you become a paralegal include whether to join an association of paralegals and whether to take steps to become certified. If you decided to become a member of a paralegal group, you have many types to choose from. And, because certification is voluntary for paralegals, different types of processes exist. This chapter helps you sort through your options for joining an association and becoming certified.

To Join or Not to Join

Depending upon your time, availability, and proclivity toward joining organizations, you may decide to join a local, state, or national paralegal association. But keep in mind that no one has to join a paralegal association to practice paralegalism.

In addition to enhancing your knowledge about new areas of law, association membership can lead to jobs by networking with other members. Because virtually all paralegal associations require that you pay annual dues and aspire to promote the ethical practice of the paralegal profession, you probably don’t need to join more than one organization. A major consideration when you’re figuring which one to join is whether you prefer a local, state, or national association, because each type has distinct advantages. We cover these questions in the following sections.

Characterizing the types of associations

Tip You’ll find paralegal groups on the national, state, and local level. Each level has something a little different to offer, but generally you’ll probably get more out of joining a local association than you will from signing up with a national one.

Reaching out: National paralegal organizations

In terms of membership numbers, the two largest national collections of paralegals are:

  • National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA; www.nala.org): NALA represents about 18,000 paralegals as individuals and through its state and local paralegal association members.
  • National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA; www.paralegals.org): NFPA is a voluntary organization of more than 50 state and local paralegal associations representing more than 9,000 paralegals who are members of those other associations, too.

Both of these national organizations publish periodicals, sponsor continuing education seminars, and offer tests for members to be named a Certified Paralegal (CP) with NALA, or a PACE Registered Paralegal (RP) with NFPA.

NALS is another national organization for paralegals and other legal professionals. It provides membership and certification to paralegals, legal secretaries, and other legal support staff.

Sticking close to home: State and local paralegal associations

Virtually every state has one or more association of paralegals, and many of them are affiliated with the large national paralegal association, NFPA. Organizations may be for residents of just one state, or they may encompass larger regions consisting of several states (like the Rocky Mountain Paralegal Association, which covers Colorado, Nebraska, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming). Additionally, a local organization of paralegals exists in virtually every large metropolitan area. Local groups often hold monthly brown-bag luncheons in a local law office conference room where prominent local attorneys or paralegals often speak to the group on pertinent issues of state or local interest. Dues are usually reasonable, but their primary advantage is the networking opportunities and local job leads you get during monthly meetings.

Tip State and local paralegal groups usually offer a better organizational structure than local groups do and are more personal than the national organizations.

Remember The online content contains a list of many national, state, and regional paralegal association in the United States, so you can get involved right away.

Hanging out at the bar: Paralegal divisions of bar associations

You can also join the paralegal division of many state and local bar associations. Although bar associations cater primarily to attorneys, many have paralegal divisions that provide excellent networking and education opportunities.

The American Bar Association (ABA) is an organization primarily for attorneys. However, the individual associate category of ABA membership is aimed at attracting persons who are qualified through education, training, or work experience and are employed by a lawyer, law office, government agency, or other similar entity to perform under attorney supervision tasks that attorneys usually undertake (in another word, paralegals). An ABA member who supervises the paralegal’s work may have to sign the paralegal’s application for associative membership.

Weighing in on whether or not to join an association

Federal and state governments don’t make it mandatory for paralegals to join paralegal associations to practice their chosen career. The federal government thus far allows virtually unfettered access to the paralegal profession. California’s mandatory education requirements for paralegals focus on elevating a paralegal’s qualifications and not at mandating organizational membership. So, although your supervising attorney has to be a member of the state bar to practice law, you don’t have to join an association to be a paralegal.

Tip You may choose to join an association, however. Some of the big advantages of joining one or more paralegal organizations include networking with other paralegals for purposes of social interaction, knowledge, or job advancement; getting involved in continuing legal education seminars; and having quick access to changes in local court practice

Warning Although these advantages make joining an association seem like a no-brainer, there are some viable reasons to opt out. First, joining can be costly. You must pay yearly dues, take time out of your day to attend meetings, and, in some cases, volunteer to commit yourself to pro bono or other association-sponsored activities. Plus, in addition to the cost, time, and commitment involved, not everyone likes joining groups.

Many paralegals, however, find that the benefits of joining outweigh the drawbacks, especially when they participate in state or local associations. Associations that are closer to home usually provide more pertinent, state-specific education opportunities and more relevant job prospects. Plus, the people you meet live in your area, so you can get together with them outside of meetings if you want. You usually meet with other members of the national organizations at yearly conventions.

Deciding Whether to Get Certified

Currently, no state requires that paralegals take a certification exam to work in their profession. So, you don’t have to spend a bunch of money and a lot of time studying for an exam if you don’t want to. But you may decide that taking a certification exam is the right path for you. If so, you need to determine which exam is best for you.

Choosing a certification exam

The two primary organizations that provide paralegal certification exams are the two major national paralegal associations: NALA and NFPA (we cover these associations earlier in this chapter). But NALS and some state paralegal associations offer certification options as well.

The CP exam

NALA calls its certification exam the CP, which stands for Certified Paralegal. So, when you pass this exam, you can add the CP designation as a professional title at the end of your name. It makes for a very fancy nameplate on your desk and adds some distinction to your resume.

Warning Only paralegals who have taken and passed the NALA CP exam can say that they are Certified Paralegals. Successfully completing a certificate course for paralegals without taking the CP exam doesn’t allow you to say you’re certified.

NALA also offers advanced certification programs that provide you with additional distinction when you successfully complete them. You can find out more about the CP exam and the advanced programs at www.nala.org.

The PACE exam

Not to be outdone by NALA, NFPA also provides an exam to certify paralegals. Successfully completing NFPA’s PACE (which stands for Paralegal Advanced Competency Exam) allows you to call yourself a Registered Paralegal and designate the title with an RP at the end of your name. Only paralegals who’ve passed the PACE can use the RP title. NFPA also offers an exam to assess the knowledge and skill of early career and entry-level paralegals called the Paralegal CORE Competency Exam (TM) also known as (PCCE) (R).

The PACE lasts four hours, and you can take it at testing centers nationwide pretty much any time you want throughout the year. The PACE uses hypothetical situations to test general knowledge and critical reasoning. To take the exam, you have to pay a registration fee and an exam fee and meet education and experience requirements. To find out more, go to www.paralegals.org.

Other certification options

NALS (see “Reaching out: National paralegal associations) offers four types of certifications by offering several exams with different emphases. Its four-part Professional Paralegal (PP) exam is offered online to those who meet the criteria. It also provides an Accredited Legal Professional (ALP) exam for entry-level staff, a Professional Legal Secretary (PLS) exam, and a Certified Legal Professional (CLP) exam. Current PLS or CLP individuals need only take the fourth part of the PP exam to gain that certification. You can find out more details on the NALS website at www.nals.org. NALS also offers a specialty certificate program that includes more than 20 areas of legal specialization by taking at least 50 credit hours of CLE credit in a specialized area of law.

Some state and local paralegal associations provide certification designations for their members. For instance, if you meet the requirements of the North Carolina Paralegal Association, you can call yourself a North Carolina Certified Paralegal (NCCP). Some states, like Texas, offer exams in specific areas of law to recognize a paralegal’s achievements. So, there may be several certification options available to you, depending on where you live. You can find out more by contacting paralegal associations and bar associations in your area.

Weighing the pros and cons of paralegal certification

Most paralegals wait until they’ve worked for a few years before they take a certification exam. When you decide to take on the challenge of a certification exam, it’s usually for one or more of these reasons:

  • You enjoy the challenge. The national certification exams are quite grueling, and you should feel a deep sense of accomplishment if you pass them.
  • You want recognition. After you’ve achieved a level of experience and expertise in your profession, you may want documentation of it. Using a professional title tells the world that you’re an expert in your field.
  • Your supervising attorney requires it. Attorneys want their practices to be as reputable and marketable as possible. And being able to say that their paralegals are certified may help them achieve this goal. Clients may feel more confident working with a paralegal who’s certified. So, some attorneys may require you to take a certification exam or provide incentives like a higher salary if you pass.
  • Your supervising attorney pays for it. Some attorneys foot the bill for their paralegals to take certification exams, which eliminates any financial concerns a paralegal would have about getting certified.
  • You’re seeking a new position. You may want to move on to a new paralegal position in another law firm or in your current firm, and certification status may be the extra edge you need to gain your dream job, maybe in a specialized area of law or in a supervisory capacity.

Despite the perks of certification, many paralegals feel that, because certification isn’t mandatory, they’d rather not incur the expense or spend the time it takes to pass an exam. Some paralegals spend months preparing for the CP or PACE exam. Some people would rather focus on their paralegal work than study for an exam. What you decide to do depends on your level of experience, the type of firm you work for, the desires of your supervising attorney, and your own professional goals.