This concentrated certificate program is designed to provide students with a basic foundation of skills and knowledge needed to seek employment as a paralegal. The program’s curriculum requires completion of a combination of legal specialty, business and liberal arts courses. Legal specialty courses emphasize the role of the paralegal in dealing with clients, documents and procedures, while working under the supervision of an attorney. Credits earned in this program may be applied to the Paralegal Associate in Applied Science degree program.
Students who successfully complete the Certificate in Paralegal (PLL) will be able to:
-
Articulate the role of paralegals in the legal system and develop an awareness of potential ethical issues that may arise and ethical duties that exist in the legal work environment.
-
Use critical thinking skills to apply substantive legal principles in order to analyze and resolve legal problems.
-
Apply the basic principles of legal research in an accurate, effective, and efficient manner.
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Articulate an understanding of the techniques of legal analysis and writing and develop written communication skills.
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Demonstrate an ability to use a variety of print and electronic legal research resources.
Courses should be selected in consultation with an advisor.
NOTE:
Students enrolled in a Certificate program must complete at least 50% of the program
credits at DCC.* Students must earn an overall cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher in
order to be awarded the certificate.
*Certain courses may be required to be taken at DCC; check your specific program for these exceptions.
First Semester
|
Course No. |
Descriptive Title |
Credit Hours |
|
Composition I |
3 |
|
|
Introduction To Law |
3 |
|
|
Computer Systems and Applications |
3 |
|
|
Fundamentals of Paralegalism |
3 |
|
|
Legal Research |
3 |
|
|
TOTAL |
|
15 |
Second Semester
|
Course No. |
Descriptive Title |
Credit Hours |
|
MAT 109 or higher |
Survey of Mathematics or higher (a) |
3 |
|
Legal Writing |
3 |
|
|
Paralegal Electives--select three from: BUS 215, CRJ 265, PAL 210, PAL 220, PAL 230, PAL 240, PAL 250 |
9 |
|
|
BHS 103 OR |
Social Problems in Today's World OR |
|
|
State and Local Government |
3 |
|
|
TOTAL |
|
18 |
|
|
TOTAL CREDIT HOURS |
33 |
(a) MAT 110 or MAT 111 recommended