For Lawyers
Standing Committee on Paralegals
The Standing Committee on Paralegals, formerly Standing Committee on Legal Assistants, is a standing committee of the State Bar of Texas organized to promote and assist the legal profession in the use of paralegals. Below you will find links to other State Bar related sites, dates and places of interest, and the names and addresses of the current officers and members of the Committee.
What's Here
- Paralegal Definition
- Texas Paralegal's Creed
- The Texas Forum
- Resources and Links
- Articles
- Current Committee Officers and Members
- Committee Meeting Documents
PARALEGAL DEFINITION AND STANDARDS ADOPTED BY THE STATE BAR OF TEXAS
"In 2005, the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors, the State Bar of Texas Standing Committee on Paralegals, and the Paralegal Division of the State Bar of Texas, adopted a new definition for “Paralegal:”
A paralegal is a person, qualified through various combinations of education, training, or work experience, who is employed or engaged by a lawyer, law office, governmental agency, or other entity in a capacity or function which involves the performance, under the ultimate direction and supervision of a licensed attorney, of specifically delegated substantive legal work, which work, for the most part, requires a sufficient knowledge of legal principles and procedures that, absent such person, an attorney would be required to perform the task.
On April 21, 2006, the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors approved amending this definition by including the following standards, which are intended to assist the public in obtaining quality legal services, assist attorneys in their utilization of paralegals, and assist judges in determining whether paralegal work is a reimbursable cost when granting attorney fees:
A. Support for Education, Training, and Work Experience:
1. Attorneys are encouraged to promote:
a. paralegal attendance at continuing legal education programs;
b. paralegal board certification through the Texas Board of Legal Specialization
(TBLS);
c. certification through a national paralegal organization such as the National
Association of Legal Assistants (NALA) or the National Federation of
Paralegal
Associations (NFPA); and
d. membership in the Paralegal Division of the State Bar and/or local paralegal
organizations.
2. In hiring paralegals and determining whether
they
possess the requisite education,
attorneys are encouraged to
consider
the following:
a. A specialty certification conferred by TBLS; or
b. A CLA/CP certification conferred by NALA.; or
c. A PACE certification conferred by NFPA; or
d. A bachelor's or higher degree in any field together with a minimum of one (1)
year of employment experience performing substantive legal work under the
direct supervision of a duly licensed attorney AND completion of 15 hours of
Continuing Legal Education within that year; or
e. A certificate of completion from an ABA-approved program of education and
training for paralegals; or
f. A certificate of completion from a paralegal program administered by any
college or university accredited or approved by the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board or its equivalent in another state.
3. Although it is desirable that an
employer hire a paralegal who has received legal instruction
from a formal education program,
the
State Bar recognizes that some paralegals are
nevertheless qualified if they
received
their training through previous work experience. In the
event an applicant does not meet
the
educational criteria, it is suggested that only those
applicants who have obtained a
minimum
of four (4) years previous work experience in
performing substantive legal
work,
as that term is defined below, be considered a paralegal.
B. Delegation of Substantive Legal Work:
"Substantive legal work" includes, but is not limited to, the following: conducting client interviews and maintaining general contact with the client; locating and interviewing witnesses; conducting investigations and statistical and documentary research; drafting documents, correspondence, and pleadings; summarizing depositions, interrogatories, and testimony; and attending executions of wills, real estate closings, depositions, court or administrative hearings, and trials with an attorney.
"Substantive legal work" does not include clerical or administrative work. Accordingly, a court may refuse to provide recovery of paralegal time for such nonsubstantive work. Gill Sav. Ass'n v. Int'l Supply Co., Inc., 759 S.W.2d 697, 705 (Tex. App. Dallas 1988, writ denied).
C. Consideration of Ethical Obligations (See Note* below):
-
Attorney. The employing attorney has the responsibility for ensuring that the conduct of the paralegal performing the services is compatible with the professional obligations of the attorney. It also remains the obligation of the employing or supervising attorney to fully inform a client as to whether a paralegal will work on the legal matter, what the paralegal's fee will be, and whether the client will be billed for any nonsubstantive work performed by the paralegal.
-
Paralegal. A paralegal is prohibited from engaging in the practice of law, providing legal advice, signing pleadings, negotiating settlement agreements, soliciting legal business on behalf of an attorney, setting a legal fee, accepting a case, or advertising or contracting with members of the general public for the performance of legal functions.
*************
*Note: a more expansive list is included in the "General Guidelines for the Utilization of the Services of Legal Assistants by Attorneys" (pdf) approved by the Board of Directors of the State Bar of Texas, May, 1993.
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Texas Paralegal's Creed
Download the Texas Paralegal's Creed [PDF].
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The Texas Forum
Since November 1982, this committee has sponsored the Texas Forum, an annual conclave of attorneys, paralegals, educators, and paralegal managers, who meet to discuss paralegal utilization best practices and professional development practices. On Feb. 25, 2011, in Dallas, the Committee hosted Texas Forum XXVIII on "The Gray Area for Lawyers and Paralegals: Ethical Vulnerabilities Created by Business Scandals and Social Media." There were 125 attendees.
Resources and Links
- Paralegal Division
- Family Law Section
- Texas Young Lawyers Association
- Supreme Court - Texas
- State Bar College
- Board of Law Examiners
- Alternative Dispute Resolution Section
- American Bar Association
Publications and Guides
- Why Your Firm Needs a Paralegal brochure, State Bar Standing Committee on Paralegals [PDF]
- Attorney’s Guide to Practicing with Paralegals, State Bar Standing Committee on Paralegals (to be published in 2011)
- General Guidelines for the Utilization of the Services of Legal Assistants by Attorneys (May 1993, Approved by State Bar of Texas Board of Directors) (pdf)
- Texas Paralegal Standards
- ABA Model Guidelines
Links
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Articles
- Paralegal
With a Law Firm vs. Paralegal With a Corporation, by Cecile N.
Wiginton, CP [PDF]
- “What’s in a Paralegal Program?”, by Rhonda Brashears, CP [PDF]
- State Bar Paralegal Division Ethics Articles
- No, a Paralegal is Not a Lawyer
- What Paralegals Can Do
- Getting Legal with Paralegals
Current Officers and Members
CHAIR
Linda Thomas, Chief Justice (Ret.)
JAMS – The Resolution Experts
8401 N. Central Expwy., Ste. 610
Dallas, TX 75225
Tel: (214) 744-5267
lbthomas@sbcglobal.net
VICE CHAIR
Darla Fisher
Lynch Chappell and Alsup
300 N. Marienfeld St., Ste. 700
Midland, TX 79701
Tel: (432) 683-3351
dfisher@lcalawfirm.com
BOARD ADVISOR
T. Mark Kelly
ALTERNATE BOARD ADVISOR
Ike Vanden Eykel
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Member Terms Expiring 2012
Miriam L. Ackels
Ackels & Ackels, PC
3030 LBJ Fwy., Ste. 1550
Dallas, TX 75234
(214) 267-8600
miriam@ackelslaw.com
Jose Luis Bravo
Public Defenders’ Office
1223 S. Kansas
San Juan, TX 78589
(956) 292-7040
jbravo74@yahoo.com
Jacqueline A. Brennan, Advisory Member
Houston, TX
(713) 824-2874
jacbrennan@gmail.com
Page A. Duff
2711 N. Haskell, Ste. 900
Dallas, TX 75204
(214) 874-2894
page_duff@hotmail.com
Darla J. Fisher, Public Member
Lynch Chappell and Alsup
300 N. Marienfeld St., Ste. 700
Midland, TX 79701-4385
(432) 683-3351
dfisher@lcalawfirm.com
Robert M. Freedman
Mulder & Freedman, PC
4545 Mount Vernon
Houston, TX 77006
(713) 721-5657
rmfreedman@medicaidhelp.net
Michele Jura
Office of the Attorney General
408 Bushick Dr.
San Antonio, TX 78223
(210) 337-5440
michelejura@yahoo.com
Allen Mihecoby, Public Member
BNSF Railway Co.
PO Box 190987
Dallas, TX 75219
(817) 352-2371; fax (817) 352-7635
allen.mihecoby@bnsf.com
Andree Rosen
Midland College
5002 Thames Ct.
Midland, TX 79705
(432) 685-4660
arosen@midland.edu
Paul Taparauskas
Harris Co. Flood Control District
9900 Northwest Fwy.
Houston, TX 77092
(713) 684-4004
paul.taparauskas@hcfcd.org
Pamela H. Young, Advisory Member
Lonergan Law Firm
Dallas, TX 75243
pyoung@lonerganlaw.com
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Member Terms Expiring in 2013
Rhonda J. Brashears
Underwood, Wilson, Berry, Stein, Johnson
PO Box 9158
Amarillo, TX 79105
(806) 376-5613
rhonda.brashears@uwlaw.com
Gregory Lynn Crossett
Texas State University
601 University Dr.
San Marcos, TX 78666
(512) 245-2233
lc25@txstate.edu
Conrad Bruce Guthrie
Law Office of Conrad Guthrie
2426 Carriage Lamp
The Woodlands, TX 77384
(713) 898-3423; fax (888) 666-2801
conrad@conradguthrie.com
Christopher Howe
Kelly Hart & Hallman
201 Main St., Ste. 2500
Fort Worth, TX 76102
(817) 878-3568
chris.howe@khh.com
Suzanne Kiefer, Public
Member
KIP Connections LLC
6757 Arapaho, Ste. 711-285
Dallas, TX 75248
(214) 683-5662
skiefer@kipconnections.com
John B. Strasburger
Weil Gotshal & Manges, LLP
700 Louisiana, Ste. 1600
Houston, TX 77002
(713) 546-5000
john.strasburger@weil.com
Lynette Tatum
McMahon, Surovik, Suttle, PC
400 Pine St., Ste. 800
Abilene, TX 79601
(325) 676-9183
ltatum@mcmahonlawtx.com
Mark A. Ticer
4144 N. Central Expwy., Ste. 1255
Dallas, TX 75204
(214) 219-4220
mticer@ticerlaw.com
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Member Terms Expiring in 2014
Roberta J. Hegland
The Hegland Law Firm
98 San Jacinto Blvd., Ste. 2000
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 524-2842
Roberta@heglandlawfirm.com
Andres Abif Lopez
McAllen, TX 78504
andresabif_law@live.com
Rhonda Bear Mates
Brown McCarroll LLP
111 Congress Ave., Ste. 1200
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 479-9765
rmates@brownmccaroll.com
Michele Rayburn, Public Member
Wallach, Andrews & Stouffer PC
550 Bailey Ave., Ste. 500
Fort Worth, TX 76107
(817) 338-1707
m.rayburn@wallach-law.com
Sandra Kay Redburn, Public Member
The Webb Law Firm
325 N. St. Paul St., Ste. 4450
Dallas, TX 75201
(214) 871-2730
kay@webbfamilylaw.com
Linda Thomas, Chief Justice (Ret.)
JAMS – The Resolution Experts
8401 N. Central Expwy., Ste. 610
Dallas, TX 75225
(214) 744-5267
lbthomas@sbcglobal.net
Nancy A. Thomas
Attorney/Arbitrator
(214) 924-4628
natlaw@nathomas.com
Committee Meeting Documents
October 10, 2008
February 27, 2009
October 23, 2009
October 15, 2010
February 25, 2011
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