Paralegal Services

The Legal Services Course will provide the student with an overview of the US law system and career options and practice areas in this field.

Students will learn how the legal system operates in controlling how society settles disputes, punishes individuals who commit crimes, and how civil and criminal cases reach the court and are resolved. They learn about the courtroom and the basics of the typical court case.

OBJECTIVES

• Understand the basics of the legal system of the United States.
• Describe significant historical events that impacted the current legal system’s formation.
• Understand how the modern world is impacted by the rule of law.
• Differentiate between various written law types and choose the most appropriate for a given application or situation.
• Understand the Bill of Rights and examine the impact that Supreme Court decisions have had on these important rights.
• Identify court personnel roles.
• Evaluate a dispute or controversy and determine the legal recourse available to aggrieved parties; and be able to determine and analyze the appropriate use of different evidence types.
• Summarize the steps for law school admission and familiarize yourself with court requirements for the Juris Doctor program.
• Understand the role of paralegals and evaluate different career options in the legal workforce.

LEGAL SERVICES COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Topics in this course require that students familiarize themselves with the basics of United States history and organization of the United States government.

Students who are not familiar with these topics are recommended, though not required to familiarize themselves with the structure of the US government. This would include reading the US Constitution, reviewing the roles of the 3 federal government branches, and reviewing various state government structures.