Professional_Knowledge

Working as a Paralegal and possessing a great deal of interest in the law, the one organization that came to mind was the Arizona Paralegal Association, otherwise known as APA. This is a non-profit organization for legal assistants. Members of the APA consist of Legal Assistants, and students around the Phoenix area. The APA was formed so paralegals can maintain the professional standards and code of ethics that governs this demanding job. APA also provides Continuing Legal Education (CLE) and job banks for members. A membership application needs to be filled out, for one to become a part of the APA. The application consists of name, address and law firm that currently employs the paralegal. If a student would like to become a member and he or she is still attending school for a paralegal certificate, membership can be obtained for $25.00. If he or she has already completed a certified program, a diploma must be shown, and fee paid. When membership is purchased, one will have access to the job bank which, only list jobs for legal assistants. Attorneys and firms can have an ad on the website at no charge. This organization can contribute to paralegals professional knowledge in number of ways. Too often there is a change in new laws, judicial decisions, and changes to the local rules of civil procedure. To keep up to date on new laws there is CLE training. CLE keeps the paralegal up to date on laws, and training to better assist the attorney’s. Seminars are also offered to members out the Phoenix area which makes a remarkable place to mingle with different paralegals. This could be detrimental to a person’s career because it allows him or her to network. This year’s seminar was about Forensic psychiatric evaluation, and legal writing. Legal writing would have been a much needed seminar. Learning new techniques in legal writing could have benefitted me immensely. The local rules of Civil Procedure can change, when the rules change it is very important for a paralegal to be aware of the changes. If a new rule comes into effect and the legal assistant is not ware of it, it can put the whole case at jeopardy. The APA announces changes to the rules, and new rules, which will give a paralegal the knowledge to help move a case along without any surprises. Paralegals must adhere by a strict code of ethics; refreshing oneself with the code can help maintain professionalism within the office and with clients. APA will also give resources that may be necessary to this career. Some resources one my find helpful is researching for information regarding corporations, public records, and courts for the state of Arizona. Being a member of this organization could benefit a paralegal’s professional career greatly; it would give the learning tools needed to become more efficient in legal writing, and training in other areas of the law. It would also allow employers to see that the employee is dedicated to his or her job and willing to take the initiative to learn new things.