Both high school graduates and those with transferable college credits will benefit from courses that examine the law in relation to our city, our state and our country. Our program's broad perspective is valuable because paralegals constantly find the scope of their work expanding. Today's legal assistants are involved in such varied areas as estate administration, real estate, legislative analysis, witness examination, tax planning and the preparation of legal support via computer and internet systems. Our professors are working professionals. Not all legal work requires a law degree.
Paralegals usually work directly under the supervision of lawyers.
Although the lawyers assume responsibility for the legal work, they can and do delegate to paralegals many of the tasks they perform for their clients. Paralegals are prohibited, however, from setting legal fees, giving legal advice or presenting a case in court. Specifically, paralegals help draft legal documents like wills, mortgages, divorce papers and trusts. Some paralegals are generalists, working on a civil case disposition one day and drafting a brief for a criminal trial the next. Paralegals who work for corporations help corporate counsel with such matters as employee contracts, shareholder agreements, stock option plans and employee benefit plans.