Legal Assistants/Paralegals of Southern West Virginia

Nominations for 2014 LAPSWV Paralegal of the Year are being accepted through May 1, 2014

Each year LAPSWV selects a Paralegal of the Year. Nominees must be an active member of LAPSWV. The Paralegal of the Year award will be presented at the 10th Annual Seminar & Meeting on May 30, 2014. 

Active members of LAPSWV should have recently received a letter and nomination form from LAPSWV President, Patricia Schoolcraft, CLA.  Your nomination must be postmarked by May 1, 2014.  You may make only one nomination. The Executive Committee will review all nominations received and will select the Paralegal of the Year. 

If you are an active LAPSWV member and did not receive a nomination letter and form, please contact Patricia Schoolcraft, CLA, LAPSWV President, at president@lapswv.org.

CANDIDATES FOR 2014-2015 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Candidates for Office of President 

Patricia Schoolcraft, CLA

Patricia Schoolcraft is employed by Preston and Salango, PLLC, as a litigation paralegal. She has been employed as a paralegal since 1992. She previously was employed as a regulatory paralegal with the State of WV and as a defense litigation paralegal with a large WV defense firm. Patricia received her B.A. degree from WVU Institute of Technology in 2003, her A.A.S., Legal Assistant, with high honors, degree from Marshall Community and Technical College in 1992, and her CLA certification from NALA in 1998. Patricia has been a NALA member since 1998, and was a member of LAWV from 1992-2004. She is a founding member of LAPSWV. As a member of LAPSWV, she has served as Treasurer, Secretary, Second Vice President, First Vice President, and Presdent. She previously served as Chair of the Nomiantions and Elections Committee, Audit Committee, Membership Committee, and By-Laws Committee for LAPSWV.

  Candidate for Office of First Vice President

Candidate for Office of Second Vice President

  Candidate for Office of Treasurer 

Candidate for Office of Secretary

 Candidates for Office of NALA Liaison

Heather Jordan

Heather Jordan is employed by Huddleston Bolen LLP as a litigation paralegal. She has been employed as a paralegal since 2010 and was a legal secretary for five years prior. Heather received her B.S. in Environmental Science from Marshall University in 2003 and her Master of Science in Environmental Science from Marshall University in 2007. She has been a member of LAPSWV and NALA since 2011. Presently, she is studying for the NALA certifying exam.

Rhonda Swartz, CLA

Rhonda Swartz, CLA is employed by the US Attorney's office in the Civil Division. She has been a member of the legal profession for approximately 24 years. Rhonda earned an Associate in Administrative Science and an Association in Secretarial Science/Information Administration from Glenville State College with high honors in 1991. In 1995, she graduated with a Regents Bachelor of Arts from Glenville State College with high honors. She obtained her CLA/CP certification from NALA in September 2000.  Currently, she is preparing to take the ACP exam. Rhonda is currently an active member of NALA.  She is a founding member of LAPSWV, and served as Historian/Parlimentarian, 2nd Vice President, 1st Vice President, and President. During her tenure she also served on various committees which include the Education/Scholarship Committee, Audit Committee, and Membership Committee. Rhonda is an active member of The West Virginia Bar Association, Legal Assistant Division (2002-present).

DESIGNATION OF PROXY & ALTERNATE PROXY

If you cannot attend the LAPSWV annual membership meeting on May 30, 2014, you may designate another active member and an alternate to represent you.  You must file a Designation of Proxy form with the LAPSWV Secretary by April 29, 2014.  It is prudent to file this form even if you plan to attend the meeting.  Should unforeseen circumstances keep you from attending the election, then a designated proxy could step in for you.  Be sure that your designated proxy and alternate are active members, and that they plan to attend the meeting. 

You may use the Instructions to Proxy and Alternate Proxy form to instruct your proxy holders on how you wish your vote to be cast.                               

 2014 SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE ONLINE

LAPSWV Sponsors three (3) scholarships:

• CLA/CP Exam
• APC Exam
• Scholarship for legal assistant/paralegal academic program 

Applications must be received by the LAPSWV Scholarship Committee on or before May 1, 2014.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

LAPSWV 10th ANNUAL SEMINAR & MEMBERSHIP MEETING
Friday, May 30, 2014
Holiday Inn & Suites
3551 Route 60 East
Barboursville, WV

NALA 39th ANNUAL CONVENTION INSTITUTES & EXHIBITION
July 23-25, 2014
Charleston, SC

Registration is now open for the 2014 NALA Convention. 
Click for more details!

NALA CLA EXAMINATION DATES

As a reminder to all, the Certified Paralegal examination consists of five examination sections: 

1. Communications
2. Ethics
3. Judgment and Analytical Ability
4. Legal Research
5. Substantive Law

September 2013 was the first testing of the new format of the Certified Paralegal examination, Substantive Law section. The Substantive Law section now consists of questions on the following subjects:

• American Legal System
• Civil Litigation
• Business Organizations
• Contracts

Additional optional areas are no longer available. All examinees will take the same test.

The Certifying Board announced modifications to the Substantive Law section earlier this year after careful study of the 2012-13 Job Analysis study. The Certifying Board strives to link the Certified Paralegal examination directly to the day to day duties and responsibilities of paralegals in the workplace. The modifications are a continued effort to ensure the Certified Paralegal examination remains an accurate and relevant reflection of the duties and responsibilities of today's paralegals.

 A detailed list of specifications for the Certified Paralegal examination may be found on the NALA web site under "Certification/Certified Paralegal Exam Description" (click here) as well as a more detailed statement of these modifications.

New Practice Tests for the Certified Paralegal Exam Now Available!  

Since introduction of the computer based testing for the Certified Paralegal examination, examinees requested the experience of taking the examination.  Examinees have also requested more practice tests for the Certified Paralegal examination.  

NALA put the two requests together and announces the availability of practice tests for the Certified Paralegal examination on the same testing environment as the Certified Paralegal examination itself.

The practice tests have been developed from the web-based Certified Paralegal review programs on NALA Campus.  

If you have taken a NALA Campus course, you will recognize many of the questions.


Features:

*    Practice tests may be accessed through https://app.testrac.com/nalap/delivery.   The practice tests are delivered on exactly the same platform as the actual Certified Paralegal examination.
*    Participants will receive instructive feedback on most questions. The feedback describes why the answer is correct or incorrect. Upon completion of a test, participants will have an opportunity to download the question item feedback.
*    Participants also receive feedback describing how they scored on the exam based on the subject category of the question.  
*    The Judgment & Analytical Ability practice test includes a bonus handout - an assignment and sample memo for self-grading.
*    The practice tests are about 1/2 of the entire Certified Paralegal examination.

To Purchase:
*    Individual sections:  $30 each for Communications, Ethics and Legal Research; $40 each for Substantive Law and Judgment & Analytical Ability.
*    Purchase of all five sections:  $85 (50% discount if all five sections purchased)

Paralegal Schools:  Vouchers are available for quantity purchases. Contact NALA for details.

Upon purchase, a login will be provided. Practice tests may not be downloaded for future reference, nor printed. Printing and reproduction of the test questions is strictly prohibited.

Did you miss the renewal deadline?

Dues for renewed membership in LAPSWV were due and payable on or before July 1. If you missed the deadline and wish to retain your LAPSWV membership, please contact Sherri Rasmussen at treasurer@lapswv.org to determine what you need to do to renew your membership. 

_______________________________

NEW EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY POSTED 2/3/14

Litigation Paralegal Position Available in Charleston, WV.

Employment opportunities are posted to the Members Only section.  Forgot your password or login, contact the system administrator at system.domain.admin@lapswv.org.