Paralegal / Legal Assistant

The online degree program is identical to the classroom version of the Associate in Science degree in Legal Assistant/Paralegal. Skills and knowledge acquired through the online degree program will mirror what is gained in the classroom.

Role of Paralegal / Legal Assistants

While lawyers assume ultimate responsibility for legal work, they often delegate many of their tasks to Legal Assistants/Paralegals. Legal Assistants/Paralegals continue to assume a growing range of tasks in the nation's legal offices and perform many of the same tasks as lawyers. Some of their most important tasks are

• Helping lawyers prepare for closings, hearings, trials, and corporate meetings.
  
• Investigating the facts of cases and ensure that all relevant information is considered.
  
• Identify appropriate laws, judicial decisions, legal articles, and other materials that are relevant to assigned cases
  
• Prepare written reports that attorneys use in determining how cases should be handled.
  
• Help draft contracts, mortgages, separation agreements, and trusts.
  
• Assist in preparing tax returns and planning estates.
  
• In the public sector, analyze legal material for internal use, maintain reference files, conduct research for attorneys, and collect and analyze evidence for agency hearings.

Courses for Paralegals

1. Associate of Arts Degree Major: Paralegal Studies

Program Objectives

This program trains students to become an essential and vital part of any legal team. Students will study and become adept in legal research, writing and analysis, and also with the interviewing of clients and witnesses, fact gathering, summarizing trial evidence, estate administration and property transfer. In this program, paralegal students also learn to form corporations and partnerships, conduct and participate in real estate closings, draft leases and examine mortgages, handle landlord and tenant relations, draft contracts, and partake of product liability and personal injury cases, as well as participate in other civil and criminal cases.

Career / Job Outlook for Paralegal Graduates

The Paralegal graduate can seek employment in a variety of settings including:

• Private law firms
  
• Title companies
  
• Local, state, and federal government agencies
  
• Corporate law departments
  
• Law enforcement agencies
  
• Banks
  
• Prosecutors
  

2. Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies

The legal studies major prepares students for challenging and responsible work in the legal environment. The curriculum is relevant and current for work in various legal settings that use paralegals and focuses on fundamental legal knowledge, skills, and ethical principles. The curriculum addresses the organization, function, and processes of the lawmaking institutions in the American legal system, as well as the role of the paralegal in the legal system and the governing rules of legal ethics. It emphasizes legal analysis, legal writing and drafting, legal research, and computer competence in the legal environment.

Objectives

A student who graduates with a major in legal studies will be able to

• Explain the historical development and the basic constitutional principles of the American legal system.
  
• Compare and contrast the American legal system with other legal systems.
  
• Discuss issues relevant to the paralegal profession.
• Recognize and discuss ethical considerations involved in the practice of law.
  
• Explain substantive concepts in selected areas of legal specialization.
  
• Describe the procedures for settlement of civil, criminal, and administrative disputes.
  
• Identify ways that computers assist in the legal environment.
  Analyze facts, law, and legal issues.
  
• Explain legal topics and analysis.
  
• Complete book-based and computer-assisted legal research tasks.
  
• Draft writings typically assigned to paralegals in selected areas of legal practice.
  
• Perform tasks typically assigned to paralegals in selected areas of legal practice.
  
• Use selected software to accomplish tasks in the legal environment.

3. Undergraduate Certificate: Paralegal Studies Concentrations

The Paralegal Studies certificate focuses on legal concepts, procedures, and skills that are used in a wide variety of legal environments. This program addresses the organization, functions, and processes of institutions in the U.S. legal system, roles and issues in the paralegal field, legal ethics, and selected specialty areas. The curriculum emphasizes important skills, including legal analysis, communication, legal research, computer competence, legal drafting, investigation, organization, and specialized legal skills. A total of 60 semester hours is required for completion of the certificate, including 36 semester hours of general college coursework and 24 semester hours of legal studies coursework.