ABA Approved Paralegal Programs

Whether you live in Florida or Alaska, California or New York, there are plenty of ABA approved paralegal programs for you to successfully pass through to become one of the leading paralegals in your city. Not only do you have the option of successfully completing one of these courses, but you also gain the opportunity to become certified through an ABA approved association.

But let me not get ahead of myself. Let’s first discuss the ABA and then give you the information that will lead you to one of these programs (or even become certified if you so desire).

What’s the ABA?

ABA stands for the American Bar Association. This organization is the largest voluntary professional association in the world, with almost 400K members associated with it. The entire legal community looks to the ABA for accreditation, consultation, continuing legal education, information about the law, paralegal programs, and initiatives to improve the legal system as a whole.

As stated from the ABA site, their mission statement is thus:

“To serve equally our members, our profession and the public by

defending liberty and delivering justice as the national

representative of the legal profession.”

As you can see, the ABA plays a large role in the lives of paralegals. Not only do they help individuals with paralegal information, but they also help people know which programs and certifications make the most successful paralegals.

If you’re looking for the best paralegal program to enter, then look no further than an ABA approved course or program to begin. And that’s why we’d like to give you a head start in deciding which ABA approved paralegal program to get started with.

ABA Approved Paralegal Programs

Because the list of ABA approved schools and programs is protected by privacy laws and copyrights, we cannot publish this information at this time. But if you’re interested in finding this information quickly, and for your specific state, click here. This link will take you to the data directly. Good luck!

Paralegal Certification

To become certified as a paralegal is not necessarily required in every state. Depending upon where you live and work, you may not even need to bother with this step. But if you work in California, or a few other states, you will definitely need to go through an ABA approved paralegal association to gain your credentials to enter this profession. The largest organizations for becoming certified include:

1. The American Alliance of Paralegal, Inc. (AAPI)
2. The National Association of Legal Secretaries (NALS)
3. The National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA)
4. The National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA)

If you’re interested in finding out the procedures to gain your paralegal certification through one of these organizations, you’ll find everything to get you started in our post “Paralegal Certification Options.”

Conclusion

Obviously, the American Bar Association is an important step in your journey to become a paralegal. Becoming a member is key to your success in this profession and while you’re at it, we would encourage you to become a member of one of the ABA approved associations to eventually receive your paralegal certification. Although you may not need this in your state, it will give you a lead in your next interview.