Paralegal Specialist Certificates

This course will be an intensive course focused on advanced legal writing skills with drafting of complex legal documents involving multi-level issues at the state and federal levels and legal research skills utilizing Westlaw, Lexis and the Law Library.

A Paralegal can be involved in almost every aspect of a lawyer’s representation, including the initial interview, client communication, document preparation, filing, assisting at the meeting with creditors, researching the Rules and the Code, and assisting the attorney in cases involving ancillary litigation.

The University of Miami is proud to announce our new Immigration Law Seminar designed to expand the educational and professional horizons for all Paralegals! In this 24 hour accelerated course, students will become familiar with all aspects of the immigration and naturalization process, including the various visa types.

One of the tenets of paralegal ethics is that a paralegal may not give legal advice or represent another person on a legal matter.

Mediation has become an important first step in the dispute resolution process.

A paralegal who has knowledge of potential tort claims can be an invaluable asset.

Formal agreements between two or more parties usually involve contracts.

Paralegals who have a working knowledge of the procedures for incorporating a business and the documentation necessary to maintain the corporate structure are at a distinct advantage.

In criminal work, it is not only property or money at stake. It is a defendant’s freedom. Whether working for a defense attorney or a government entity, the paralegal can be part of the process that requires that accused individuals be given a fair trial. Paralegal today conduct interviews, perform research, help to prepare documents for trial, and many other crucial duties on behalf of the supervising attorney.

Family law paralegals are in great demand. The paralegal is often the primary contact between the law firm and the client. Students will learn special interview considerations, drafting, premarital agreement, researching family court rules and much more.

Areas of law that are either “procedure – heavy” or “document-intensive” tend to be great areas of employment for paralegals. Bankruptcy is both! Paralegals enable law firms to handle more clients, more efficiently, and to provide better client service. A paralegal’s role in bankruptcy is critical.

General intellectual property paralegal positions are growing at a high rate. In addition, patent administration is one of the fastest growing and highest paid areas of legal administration. Qualified patent paralegals (also called patent specialist or patent secretaries) are in high demand and can earn up to 50% more than the average paralegal!

Every concert, television show, movie, song played on radio, play, sporting event, movie, and every other form of entertainment today is guided by legal agreements. More than ever the media entertainment is saturated by the law, seeking to ensure the interests of artists and performers.

Immigration is the single fastest growing specialty area of law for paralegals. As the global marketplace expands, the need for legal services related to immigration will continue to grow, and paralegal job opportunities should increase. Immigration is an ever more pervasive legal aspect for businesses, the government, families, and individuals in our society.

This environmental law course will focus on the legal regulations of pollution and waste management. The course will cover a number of federal environmental statutes, including the clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, and the Superfund law.

Whether drafting a will or helping to administer a trust, attorneys appreciate the role of paralegals in estate planning and administration. Wills allow a person to dictate what will be done with her or her property after death. Trusts involve the administration of funds from an estate in a pre-determined fashion. Probate is the process of enforcing wills, estate planning, and established trusts through the courts.

A paralegal can be an invaluable asset in both the procedural and representative process. Workmen’s compensation law is basically a form of administrative representation, but it has become so specialized and document intensive that paralegals are now a major component of the process.

Tax law attorneys are often employed in consultative roles and as representatives in tax litigation. Lawyers and law firms specializing in tax litigation. Lawyers and law firms specializing in tax law are in need of paralegals to both increase client base and facilitate effective representation.

Employment law encompasses contractual agreements, duties of the employer and rights of the employee, harassment issues, race discrimination, age discrimination, sex discrimination, and sexual orientation discrimination, and, of course issues related to termination.

The population of the United States is aging, with the Baby Boom generation entering retirement age. This large scale portion of the population will stretch government and private services as never before. Thus, the need to help members of that group in protecting their legal rights will become more and more important.

Historically, sports law has been lumped in generally with other entertainment representation. Today, with the explosion of sporting events and professional leagues, this area of law is deserving of its own focus. There are, after all, special considerations for athletes not relevant to most other areas of entertainment law.

Juvenile law has evolved into a combination of criminal law and family, with an emphasis on the unique and continually shifting process involving the prosecution of minors. Paralegals are an especially valuable tool for lawyers practicing juvenile law. They often bring a more sensitive nature to client communication while still possessing the skills needed to assist in representation.

Paralegals are the perfect tool for the drafting of sales contracts, leases, and property management agreements. There are also more newly evolved legal issues related to restrictive covenants, lease-holds, and home – owner associations that make legal representation ever present in real estate matters.

If you ever worked for a law firm, you will understand this statement: Lawyers do not usually make the best managers. To put it simply, it is not what they were trained to do. Thus it is not uncommon for the law office manager, or administrator, to be a non-lawyer. The perfect law office manager would be someone who had skills and experience related to the law, but who possessed administrative skills as well. The answer is often a paralegal!

Litigation is the largest single are of employment for Paralegals. It involves helping an attorney prepare for, conduct, and potentially appeal the results of a trial. More and more, alternative forms of conflict resolution are encompassed within the realm of litigation specialist, such as arbitration, mediation, and even the new concept of “mini-trials.”