BLOG - Current News

PCCE and PACE Online Review Courses Start Monday, October 15^th.

Each course runs for seven weeks and covers all domains for each of the certification exams.  The cost for either the PCCE or the PACE review course is $395. At the conclusion of both students will complete an exit exam and each students will receive a score and an analysis of their strengths and weaknesses so that they will know where to focus their final preparation for the exams.

The next start date for both review courses is Monday, November 26^th. Additional courses may be added if sufficient interest is expressed.

Here is the link for additional information and to register for the PCCE review course: http://www.paralegals.org/default.asp?page=101

For more information and to register for the PACE review course follow this link: http://www.paralegal.org/default.asp?page=61

The Indiana Paralegal Association and the Indianapolis Bar Association, Paralegal Section invite you to join us for our combined monthly luncheon meeting/seminar on the topic:

Pro Bono – it’s not just for attorneys anymore!

Special guest will be Erik Chickedantz, President of the Indiana State Bar Association.

  

Date: August 15, 2012          Time: 11:45 Where: Indiana State Bar Association Conference Rooms A and B, One Indiana Square, Suite 530 [NE corner of Ohio and Pennsylvania Streets] Menu: Beef or Chicken Taco Salad Bar Refried beans Chips & Queso Cookie/Brownie Bar /  Beverages

Value:             1.0 hour CLE credit Faculty:     Dennis Frick, Indiana Legal Services, Inc. LaDonna Wattley, Child Advocates Keith Berlin, Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP Biographies of the faculty and President Chickedantz appear below.

 

COST Members :  $21.50 Non-Members:  $21.50 Brown Bag: $5.00   PLEASE MAKE RESERVATIONS BY Friday, August 10, 2012 at 5:00P.M.   Registrations for this meeting are to be made through the Indiana Paralegal Association.  You may register online at http://www.indianaparalegals.org/events; via e-mail at info@indianaparalegals. org, or you may call IPA at the telephone number below.  Be sure to bring your check to the meeting if you have called or e-mailed your registration.     IPA derives no profit from the meetings. Indiana Paralegal Association, Inc. c/o Bingham Greenebaum Doll LLP 2700 Market Tower 10 W. Market Street Indianapolis, IN 46204 Telephone: (317) 686-3141 E-mail: info@indianaparalegals.org

ISBA President C. Erik Chickedantz, Fort Wayne, is a partner at the firm Hawk Haynie Kammeyer & Chickedantz. Since 1972, he has practiced law in Fort Wayne, concentrating in the areas of personal injury, commercial, construction and insurance defense litigation and, during the past several years, mediation and arbitration. He received his B.S. from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1963 and his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1971. Erik served as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army, 1963-69, which included duty tours with the 101st Airborne Division, Vietnamese Airborne Division and the 82nd Airborne Division.

 

He is a member of the Allen County (past president), Indiana State (president-elect, 2010-11; vice president, 2009-10; chair, House of Delegates, 2007-08; district member, board of governors, 2001-03; secretary, 1999-2000) and American bar associations; Benjamin Harrison American Inn of Court (past president); Indiana Bar Foundation (member, board of directors); and Allen County Bar Foundation (member, board of directors).

 

Erik was born in Washington, Ind., in 1941. Erik and his wife, Anita, have four grown children, Julie, Jon, Andy and Jill; a son-in-law, Brian Risley; and two granddaughters, Ali and Leah.

 

Keith Berlin is an associate at Taft Stettinius & Hollister.  He started his career at Taft and has been practicing for four years.  Mr. Berlin focuses his practice on complex commercial and environmental litigation.  He has been on the Indianapolis Bar Association's Pro Bono Standing Committee for three years and is in his first year as serving as chair of the committee.  The IndyBar's Pro Bono Standing Committee promotes equal justice by developing, facilitating, coordinating, supporting, and improving IndyBar's programs and services designed to serve the legal needs of disadvantaged residents of the City of Indianapolis and its surrounding communities while providing opportunities for IndyBar members to fulfill their professional duty and personal responsibility to provide pro bono services to those in need.

LaDonna Wattley is a Volunteer Director at Child Advocates. She made a famous training video called “Big Mama's Chair: Getting from the Company Furniture to the Kitchen Table.” Anyone who has been able to see the full version of this training can tell you its not only educational and informative but full of laughter and fun. Highly recommended!

 

Dennis Frick is a Director of the Senior Law Project of Indiana Legal Services, Inc. He has represented Medicaid clients in administrative appeals, rule-making hearings, and in state and federal court. He is a member of the Indiana State Bar Association and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. He is the past chair of the Elder Law Section of the Indiana State Bar Association.

For the Indiana Paralegal Association, Inc ~ Officer & Director Swearing in & Awards Ceremony announcement, please click here.

Read the full details on IPA's Regulation page.

NFPA Rolls Out New Website - 6/1/12

www.paralegals.org

The new NFPA website is a complete redesign.  Here are some highlights:

• Reorganized menus make it easier to find topics
• Image links for the most popular topics appear in a column on the left of every page
• Many content sections have been restructured and condensed
• Explanations for jargon and confusing terms have been added
• Old information has been either updated or eliminated
• Duplicate and conflicting information reconciled
  We designed for both the technology of today and tomorrow:
• The new site will expand to utilize all the screen real-estate you have available so you don’t need to scroll as much
• For smaller displays such as smartphones and some netbooks, the site will prioritize the main content area – making the site usable even on the go
• Announcements and upcoming events columns on the home page will also show members-only information so there is no need to navigate to a special members-only page to see them (the menu bar will have additional links based on the visitor’s permissions)
• The members-only content on the old site was hidden behind a single password that was shared by the entire membership – hardly secure - now, each member signs in using the email address they have given to their association
• The leaders-only content was behind a password shared by nearly 200 people - the site uses the Leadership Directory database to determine whether that individual gets leadership access in addition to their member access
• For leaders, the leaders2 listserv is being replaced with a web-based message system - in addition to receiving announcements in email, you will also be able to look back on past messages using a special page of the website
  Behind the scenes, there are many ways the new website design will help NFPA HQ be better able to serve you and many more additions will be worked on over the summer.

Moreover, the new site’s technological underpinnings have a greater capacity for expansion.  We will be able to add new features and enhance existing ones using HQ resources, not expensive web design firms.  We feel that what we are unveiling is great in its own right, but more than that, we see it as a foundation to build upon for even more member value in the future.

Members:  If you’re having difficulty signing in please call HQ at 425-967-0045 to verify we have the correct email address for you.  Individuals should also set their preferences regarding the broadcast NFPA e-mails, whether or not to receive a paper or online copy of the National Paralegal Reporter, and/or how their entry in the Leadership Directory, if they have one, should appear.  Associations should also continually update the Leadership Directory as to Board members so that the Leadership Directory is - at all times - up-to-date.

NFPA DEADLINES

Scholarship and Award Nominations - all nominations for NFPA awards including Individual and Association Pro Bono, Paralegal of the Year, Outstanding Local Leader and Robie, as well as applications for the two Thomson-Reuter's Scholarships must be postmarked on or before July 1, 2012.  Click HERE to access the Awards Nomination Brochure.  The Awards Procedures are in Section 25 of the NFPA Procedures Manual, or contact the Vice President and Director of Profession Development at vppd@paralegals.org for more information.
 
NFPA REMINDERS

Convention Registration - Registration will be open to all members, delegates and Association as of July 1, 2012.  Please review the Convention website page for more information, or contact HQ for more information.

I also just wanted to introduce myself as the new Secretary and Director of Operations.  I look forward to serving you all to the best of my ability.  If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.
_______________________________________
Valerie A. Dolan, RP®, Pa.C.P.
NFPA Secretary and Director of Operations

NFPA - The Leader of the Paralegal Profession®
PACE - The Standard For Excellence™

All Voting Members of IPA:

Below is a link to the 2012-2013election ballot which includes short biographies of the members on the ballot. As this is an online election and we will need to verify all persons submitting a completed ballot are voting members of the association, you will need your username and password for the IPA members only website. 

Your ballot also include proposed bylaw changes. Please review these changes using the link on the ballot.

CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO VOTE: 
http://www.indianaparalegals.org/election
Please complete your ballot by June 27, 2012 Ballots will also be made available at the June 20th monthly meeting. If you have any questions about the election process, please contact Denise Holaday, IPA's Election Chair, at elections@indianaparalegals.org

To Voting Members:

Nominations are open for 2012-13 IPA's Officers and Directors.  If you would like to submit a nomination, e-mail elections@indianaparalegals.org with the name of the nominee and the position for which that person is being nominated.  Please submit any nominations as soon as possible, but no later than May 18, 2012. 

 

Positions for nomination are:

Officers

President                                                           

Vice-President                                 

Secretary                                                            

Treasurer      

                                                     

Directors

Continuing Legal Education                         

Education                                                           

Ethics                                                                   

Fundraiser                                                         

Job Bank                                                             

Marketing/Public Relations        

Membership                                                     

Monthly Meetings         

Newsletter Editor                                           

NFPA Primary Representative   

Parliamentarian                                               

Technology      

  

Pam Retherford, President; Denise Holaday, Election Chair

Join us in "Music City - USA"
and hit all the right notes!

The third annual NFPA Joint Leadership/Regulation and Certification Ambassadors' Conference is definitely not the same old song and dance. As many paralegal professionals are continuing to recover from the changing times, many individuals are determined to restore growth and re-embark on a positive mission of expansion.  Attendees will have the opportunity to share and network with professionals regarding association leadership, the PACE and PCC exams, and regulation within the paralegal profession.  

Friday, April 20
Regulation Conference
9:00am - 5:00pm
The Regulation Conference will cover lobbying, the history and operations of the North Carolina Certified Paralegal Program, regulating non-lawyers in a legal profession, a workshop on legislation/proposal drafting and statewide alliances.  Click here for the Regulation Conference Agenda.
 
 
Saturday, April 21
Leadership Conference
8:30am - 6:00pm
The Leadership Conference will help local leaders deal with day-to-day operations.  Topics at this year's conference include how to develop your leadership styles, building consensus, committment and cooperation, learning skills to become an effective leader, tips on leading productive meetings, and how to motivate others to step up to leadership roles.  Click here for the Leadership Conference Agenda.
 
 
Sunday, April 22 and Monday, April 23
Certification Ambassadors' Conference
8:30am - 5:00pm/Sunday and 8:30am - Noon/Monday
Certification Ambassadors will be provided with the necessary resources and information to guide and mentor RPs and CRPs, as well as the duties of the PACE and PCC Ambassadors.  Items for discussion will include marketing of the exams, studying for certification exams, tips on how to navigate through the renewal process, budgeting for review courses and/or study groups, webinars and scholarships, and much more.  Click here for the Certification Ambassadors' Conference Agenda.

The 2012 Joint Conference is free to NFPA Members.  The Regulation Conference is open to Non-Members at a cost of $75 per person.

Network with other attendees during lunch on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
$25 per person/per day
 
The deadline to register is April 13, 2012

Register Online Now!

Group: National Federation of Paralegal Associations, Inc.Subject: Announcement from National Federation of Paralegal Associations, Inc. - PRO BONO WEBINAR - MARCH 29 -- REGISTRATION OPEN Here is the link to the registration form for the first NFPA Pro Bono Webinar to be held on March 29: http://paralegals.org/displayemailforms.cfm?emailformnbr=175366

Our speaker is Michael Adler of Philadelphia, whose topic is "Meaningful Giving: The Benefits of Helping Others While Networking Through Pro Bono Work." This is a wonderful opportunity to learn about networking opportunities while giving back. There is no CLE credit for this webinar.

This is a free event for NFPA members; there is a small charge for non-members. We hope to make pro bono webinars available throughout the coming year.

NFPA has received an anonymous one-time donation for a PCCE Scholarship; it is an essay and must be 2,000 words or less; deadline is July 1; the topic is:  

“Why is paralegal certification important to the paralegal profession?”  

For more details contact Edna Wallace, RP, Primary (nfpa@indianaparalegals.org) or Cari Bonty, RP, Credentials Coordinator (pace@indianaparalegals.org)