Advance Your Career! One Student’s Journey to a Paralegal Certificate.
David Mosier had already been working as a paralegal for decades when he enrolled to be a student at Center for Advanced Legal Studies. David was in the litigation support industry, and the job prospects were withering due to a declining economy. As an independent contractor, it was becoming increasingly difficult to land jobs.
Ironically, David's father is one of the most prominent real estate attorneys in Harris County. Why did David not follow the well-worn footsteps of his father and become an attorney?
It certainly wasn't for lack of trying on his father's behalf. When David was in high school, he would help out at his father's busy law practice. He learned how the office ran and a little bit about the practice of law. But David went to college for music education, until life happened and he needed to drop out of school to take care of his new family. His father encouraged him to finish college and then go on to law school so David could carry on the family business.
But David chose a different path to the legal field. Since he already had a “mild background in the legal industry,” he and his brother started a litigation support business. For 25 years, that was enough, but five children later, David needed better security and a chance to make a better living.
Paralegals can take several different paths to enter the legal profession. These typically involve different levels of education, on-the-job-training, and certifications. Where paralegals work and what specific tasks they perform, however, depends on the kind of skills, experience, and education they have.
Paralegals play a huge role in the legal services industry. Their research expertise is highly valued by lawyers and judges who need relevant information for their cases.
Are you a paralegal? Ready to move your career forward? Maybe it's time for you to become Certified.
But before we answer the 'why should I become certified' questions you may have, let's make sure we are talking about the same thing first. What do I mean? Well, there apparently continues to be confusion about the difference between a paralegal who is 'certificated' and one who is 'certified'. The confusion comes from all places; attorneys, misinformed paralegals, paralegal programs who aren't careful in their word useage, students who prefer to 'pretend' they are certified on their resumes but are really 'certificated', and probably a host of other places.