Paralegal Course Discount for ILSPA Members

Due to our close relationship with the National Association of Licensed Paralegals, we are pleased to offer our Members a 10% discount for NALP's Level 4 Diploma course. If you are interested in taking a step up the ladder and training to be a Paralegal, this course is perfect for you. What’s more, it can be studied in the comfort of your own home.

NALP’s philosophy is that before a Paralegal becomes a specialist, he or she must first become a generalist. Whatever particular area of law you may want to specialise in does not operate in a vacuum. It is vital to have a sound understanding of the English Legal System and knowledge of other areas of law too.

The Level 4 Diploma course includes two modules: General Principals of Law covers the English Legal System, the Law of Contract, the Law of Tort, Criminal Law and Wills, Intestacy and Family Provision. Procedural Law covers Civil Litigation, Criminal Practice, Matrimonial and Civil Partnership  Disputes, Conveyancing, and Succession. The units are assessed by way of coursework involving achievement tests and written assignments.

If you have studied the Legal Secretaries Diploma course, you will recognise some of the subjects covered in your studies, although they go into much more depth in the Level 4 course.

For those of you who are not familiar with the term, a ‘Paralegal’ is a person who is qualified through education and training to perform substantive legal work that requires knowledge of the law and procedures and who is not a qualified Solicitor or Barrister. Paralegals may work for, or be retained by Solicitors within the legal profession, or they may work within a legal environment within commerce, industry or the public sector.

Within the legal profession, Solicitors have always relied upon their unadmitted support staff and would be unable to operate effectively without them. Paralegals are important members of the legal team, playing key roles in the legal process. Their duties involve working closely with Solicitors and Barristers and may take them from office to courtroom, from client offices to conferences, from the law library to the negotiating table. The work that Paralegals undertake is quite often virtually indistinguishable from that undertaken by the Solicitors who employ them.

The term or title ‘Paralegal’ has caught on within the legal profession and is now used almost exclusively to describe fee earners or part-fee earners amongst unadmitted staff who are not Legal Executives. The title ‘legal assistant’ is used in only a small minority of firms. ‘Paralegal’ and ‘Legal Assistant’, as titles, are synonymous. However, unlike the terms ‘Legal Executive’ and ‘Licensed Paralegal’, which are specific titles, the term ‘Paralegal’ on its own is generic.

Many organisations within commerce and industry need and benefit from employees who have a broad knowledge of law and procedure together with an expertise applicable to their particular sector. Paralegals, therefore, can be seen working in areas such as financial services, insurance, banking, building societies, the retail sector, credit control, exports, entertainment and the media, etc. In the public sector are Government departments, local authorities, court and tribunal staff, welfare, the probation services, social services, the police, and the like. In these areas a Paralegal qualification can be invaluable.

If you would like to take this wonderful opportunity to save money on your studies, please telephone the National Association of Licensed Paralegals on 0203 176 0900 and state that you are an ILSPA Member. You can also email the NALP at info@nationalparalegals.co.uk. NALP’s website address is www.nationalparalegals.co.uk.