Programs
Paralegal Programs: Associate Degree in Paralegal Studies (ADPS)
Paralegal Programs | Paralegal Diploma | Paralegal Associate Degree | Paralegal Continuing Education
COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
| Paralegal Today | 3 Credit Hours |
| The course is the core of the paralegal program. Students will learn the past, present and future of the paralegal profession, including the paralegal defined, educational options, techniques for marketing skills and career opportunities. Instruction on ethics and professional responsibility, the organizational structure of the legal workplace and office culture and politics will prepare students for the challenges of today's paralegal. Students receive a formal introduction to law by examining sources of American law, the court system and alternative dispute resolution, substantive law in its various forms, as well as administrative law and government regulation. Legal procedures and advanced skills involving civil litigation and trial procedures, criminal law, conducting interviews and investigations, using primary and secondary sources to legal research, the emerging technology of computer assisted legal research, in addition to legal analysis and writing provide valuable insight and a solid foundation for the future legal assistant. | |
| Legal Research | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course is designed to teach the fundamentals of Legal Research. The student will learn research tools and techniques necessary to find the actual law, but also how to use the various secondary materials, which assist in the research process. Some of the topics covered are: Case Reporters, Digests, Codes, Annotated Codes, Annotated Reporters, Citators, Loose-leaf Services, Legal Encyclopedias, Treatises and Computerized Research Services. As part of the course, students enrolled in Legal Research receive a subscription to Westlaw online legal library. Students have the opportunity to take a series of tutorials to learn effective online research skills. Upon successful completion, students receive a Paralegal Training Certificate from Thomson-West. | |
| Legal Analysis and Writing | 3 Credit Hours |
| A requisite for the capable legal assistant is the ability to prepare professional legal documents. This comprehensive course provides the student with in-depth knowledge of the fundamentals of legal analysis and writing. Students will first examine an overview of the legal system, including analytic principles and the legal process. They will learn the specifics of legal analysis, including statutory analysis, case law and briefing, identifying and stating the issue, case application and counter analysis. Emphasis on application of these key principles in legal writing will allow students to prepare interoffice memorandums, court briefs and general legal correspondence. Students enrolled in Legal Analysis and Writing receive a subscription to Westlaw online legal library. Students have the opportunity to take a series of tutorials to learn effective online research skills. Upon successful completion, students receive a Paralegal Training Certificate from Thomson-West. | |
| Litigation and Trial Practice | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course provides comprehensive coverage of the civil litigation practice for paralegals. It provides detailed information on the litigation process from the pre-suit investigation to the appeal. Special emphasis is made on the role of the lawyer and those responsibilities that may be delegated to the legal assistant. Attention is given to litigation principles, lawyer and client relationship and ethics, gathering evidence, deposition, preparation for a civil trial, structure of a civil trial, judgments, and appeals. | |
| Administrative Law | 3 Credit Hours |
| The continuing growth of administrative law and regulations make this course fundamental and essential to most law practices. The course covers the delegation of authority to agencies, legislation oversight, judicial review, disclosure of information, the administrative process, procedural due process, formal adjudication, rules and rulemaking, obtaining judicial review and more. | |
| Business Organizations | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course prepares paralegal students for the practical aspects of the law of business organi-zations. It covers all issues that are typically encountered in working with business clients. Top-ics include the types of business organizations, formation of a corporation, corporate financial structure, employment and compensation, operating and maintaining business entities. | |
| Domestic Relations | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course prepares paralegal students for the area of family law. Students are introduced to the legal principles and processes involved in the law of marriage, divorce, separation, support, custody and visitation, annulment and adoption, and tax consequences of separation and di-vorce. Students learn to draft common agreements, pleadings and other documents applicable to these topics. | |
| Criminal Law | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course explores the general principles of criminal liability, the defenses to criminal liability, and the elements of crimes against persons, property, and society, while it encourages critical thinking about these topics. Special emphasis is given to both the law and the procedural as-pects of criminal justice. | |
| Real Property | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course is directed toward the training and practice of legal assistants in the area of modern real estate transactions. Topics covered are property ownership, surveys and legal descriptions of real property, easements, contract forms and standard provisions found in real estate con-tracts, deeds, real estate finance, real estate lending, mortgages and foreclosures, title examina-tions and title insurance, real estate closings, condominiums, cooperatives and time-shares, and residential and commercial leases. | |
| Trusts, Wills and Estate Administration | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course focuses on the basics of property law and its application to the main theme of wills, trusts, and estate administration. The laws that govern construction and administration of wills and trusts are covered in detail along with the roles of various participants in the process. Stu-dents will learn to develop an estate plan to dispose of assets and diminish or eliminate estate taxes through the effective use of wills and trusts. Ethics is addressed to prepare the paralegal student for the necessity to adhere to a prescribed set of rules and guidelines that will apply to their work. | |
| Contracts | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course provides paralegal students with a well organized, functional approach to the law of contracts. Paralegal students learn an approach for analyzing contract problems that they will need for their professional assignments. Topics include the type of law to apply to contract transactions, when a contract is formed, when it is enforceable, a plaintiff’s allegation of breach, a defendant response to an allegation of breach, and the remedies available for a breach of contract. | |
| Torts: Personal Injury Litigation | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course explores civil wrongs, and your studies will illustrate and explain the different types of tort recoveries that are allowed by law. Student learn the elements required to prove each tort, and defenses that may be posed, and a step-by-step strategy for the preparation and settlement for each type of action. Topics include tort theory based upon negligence, products liability, libel, slander and malpractice. | |
| Bankruptcy | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course gives a brief history of bankruptcy law, research aids, alternatives to bankruptcy, a discussion of the role of the various parties involved in the bankruptcy process, and an overview concerning eligibility and the selection of the appropriate bankruptcy chapter under which a bankruptcy should be filed. Emphasis is placed on the paralegal’s role in the fact gathering process and the interface with clients. | |
| Social Security Disability | 3 Credit Hours |
| TThis course provides insight to the disability appeals process and complex administrative procedures that ultimately appear before a federal administrative law judge. Students will learn to understand and apply key legal issues in the successful representation of clients before the Social Security Administration generally, and the Office of Hearing and Appeals specifically. | |
| Environmental Law | 3 Credit Hours |
| An increasing demand for understanding environmental law and policy issues exists today. From the history of environmental law, to the ethics and issues underlying policy making, this course provides an overview of the role other areas of law play in the development and implementation of these policies. Students will receive an introduction to law and the legal system including court structure and civil procedure. They will learn principles of American property law and examine common law theories and remedies for environmental harms and liabilities, as well as land use and regulation and constitutional issues in environmental regulation. | |
| Environmental Law | 3 Credit Hours |
| An increasing demand for understanding environmental law and policy issues exists today. From the history of environmental law, to the ethics and issues underlying policy making, this course provides an overview of the role other areas of law play in the development and implementation of these policies. Students will receive an introduction to law and the legal system including court structure and civil procedure. They will learn principles of American property law and examine common law theories and remedies for environmental harms and liabilities, as well as land use and regulation and constitutional issues in environmental regulation. | |
| Immigration Law | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course covers the law of immigration and the changes that have taken place in immigration law since September 11, 2001. It walks the student through the entire background, process, and tools essential for a legal professionals mastery of immigration law. | |
| Intellectual Property | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course covers four fields of intellectual property law; trademarks, copyrights, patents, and trade secrets. It covers topics such as the duration of rights, protection from infringement, and new and international developments in each field. | |
| English | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course is designed to develop your ability to write clearly. Emphasis is on effective writing and revising techniques including purpose, organization, and mechanics. Various modes and strategies of descriptive, narrative and illustrative essays are covered. The culminating assignment is a research paper. | |
| Interpersonal Communications | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course teaches the basics of communication principles and concepts. Topics include: Intercultural issues, conflict management, and communicating in groups and in public. | |
| Business Management | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course is designed to help the manager develop insight, sensitivity, and an improved understanding of people; assist organizational leaders in maintaining and improving the organizational climate; and assist present and future managers in understanding and improving motivations. | |
| Mathematics Essentials | 3 Credit Hours |
| This course is a basic review of Mathematical skills, including terminology, checking accounts, taxes, payroll, step-by-step approaches. This course will help you develop math skills used in personal and business applications. | |
| Psychology | 3 Credit Hours |
| Presents the theories and principles of modern psychology. You will learn about the different branches of psychology and the practical application of psychological tenets to functional behavior. | |
