Table of Contents

Introduction 1 Part I: A Snapshot of the Exciting and Lucrative Paralegal Profession 7 Chapter 1: Discovering the Paralegal Profession 9 Chapter 2: Membership Has Its Privileges: Paralegal Associations and Their Certification Exams 21 Chapter 3: The Hunt Is On: Securing a Paralegal Position 27 Part II: Important Legal Concepts Every Paralegal Should Know 37 Chapter 4: ?All Rise?: The American Judicial System 39 Chapter 5: The Big Three: Categories of Law 57 Chapter 6: Taking a Case to Trial: The Litigation Process 79 Chapter 7: How It?s Done: Important Rules of Civil Procedure and Evidence 99 Chapter 8: Because I Said So: The Categories of Legal Authority 115 Chapter 9: The Substantive Law Areas Most Commonly Practiced by Paralegals 123 Part III: Putting It into Practice: The Paralegal in the Civil Litigation Process 137 Chapter 10: The Paper Chase: Preparing Documents 139 Chapter 11: Elementary My Dear Watson: Legal Investigation 167 Chapter 12: Chewing the Fat: Legal Interviewing 179 Chapter 13: Burning the Midnight Oil: Legal Research 193 Chapter 14: Where the Rubber Hits the Road: Trial Performance 211 Chapter 15: The Official Word: Ethical Codes for Legal Professionals 225 Part IV: Skills Paralegals Need to Soar Ahead 239 Chapter 16: Write On: Presenting a Clear, Concise Legal Writing Style 241 Chapter 17: The Latest Thing: Using Technology in Law 269 Chapter 18: Law Office Management 101 281 Part V: The Part of Tens 293 Chapter 19: The Ten Most Important Rules of Ethics 295 Chapter 20: Ten Things Every Paralegal Should Know 299 Chapter 21: Ten Survival Tips to Thrive in the Legal Environment 303 Part VI: Appendixes 307 Appendix A: Glossary of Important Legal Terms: A Mini Legal Dictionary 309 Appendix B: About the CD 335 Index 347

About the Author

Scott Hatch, JD, and Lisa Zimmer Hatch, MA, are founders and administrators of The Center for Legal Studies, which offers training and certificate courses, including paralegal certificate courses, to thousands of people through hundreds of colleges and universities every year.