Chapter One
Ethical Considerations and What you Cannot Do as a Paralegal
As a paralegal you’re going to be privy to confidential information and, as such, you’ll need to ensure that you adhere to strict ethical standards. Both the National Association of Legal Assistants and the National Federation of Paralegal Associations have adopted official codes of ethics.
The National Association of Legal Assistants’ Code of Ethics, for example, consists of nine rules, among them: legal assistants can not and will not perform any tasks that are only, by law, allowed to be performed by attorneys.
You can read the full text of the code of ethics by clicking here.
The National Federation of Paralegal Associations has also adopted an extensive “Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility and Guidelines for Enforcement” which outlines, in brief, how paralegals should maintain their professionalism, their integrity, and how they should avoid conflict.
Read the full Code of Ethics, which includes a dictionary of standard legal definitions.
What You Cannot do as a Paralegal
While knowing what kind of responsibilities you may have as a paralegal is essential to deciding if it is the career for you, you must also have a firm understanding of what you’re legally prohibited to do as a paralegal:
You cannot accept clients.
You cannot dispense legal advice.
You cannot represent clients in court.
You cannot set legal fees.
Next: Chapter One: You’re Hired: types of companies that hire paralegals
Previous: Chapter One: Responsibilities
Table of Contents for the Paralegal Career Guide:
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