Notice of Revocation of Certified Paralegal Credential
for Failure to Meet CLE Requirements
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Notwithstanding anything in these rules to the contrary, the procedure for revocation of certification and use of the CP designation for failure to meet continuing education requirements shall be:
- Notice by mail of expiration of the CP designation. Said notice provides an automatic probation period of one year in order to submit the required number of continuing legal education units.
- Upon expiration of the one year probation period, if the required continuing legal education units have not been submitted, a notice of revocation is mailed to the individual advising that the certification has been revoked and further use of the CP designation is prohibited.
Appeal of Revocation of Certified Paralegal Credential
for Failure to Meet Recertification Requirements
A Certified Paralegal may appeal in writing to the Certifying Board for review of the Board’s actions concerning the continuing legal education credit requests. These appeals could claim that requests for CLE credit were lost in transit (via mail or electronically); the CLE programs were attended but evidence of attendance was destroyed, lost or misplaced; CLE credit was rejected but is believed to be within the published guidelines.
Such appeal must include any and all relevant documentation to be considered and must be received at NALA Headquarters 30 days prior to the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Certifying Board.
Such appeal shall be reviewed by an Appeals Committee which shall be composed of the chair plus two members of the Certifying Board. Each member of the Appeals Committee shall have served a minimum of one year on the Certifying Board.
The Certified Paralegal shall be provided with notice of the time and place of the meeting of the Appeals Committee. The Certified Paralegal shall have the opportunity to appear in person and/or to be represented by counsel and to present any defense or explanation before the Appeals Committee.
The Certified Paralegal will bear his or her own costs of attendance and/or representation. No adverse inference shall be drawn from the failure or inability of the Certified Paralegal to attend the meeting of the Appeals Committee.
After consideration of the matter under appeal, the Appeals Committee shall submit its recommendation for action to the Certifying Board. A majority vote of the Certifying Board members present shall be final in the matter under appellate review.
Appeal of Cancellation of Certified Paralegal Credential
Based on Hardship or Extreme Circumstances
An appeal of the revocation of the CP credential based on hardship or extreme circumstances will be considered under the following conditions:
- the five year certification period, plus the one-year extension has expired; and
- the Certified Paralegal is on active military or active military reserve duty; or
- the Certified Paralegal has extenuating personal challenges which could include long term unemployment or severe medical issues hampering one’s ability to work or engage in activities outside of work for a period of one year or more.
If any such appeal is submitted, the Certifying Board Chair will investigate to determine (a) whether the reason is a hardship or extreme circumstance and (b) if sufficient information has been submitted to substantiate the claim.
If the Chair finds the claim meets the conditions above, a committee of the Chair plus two Certifying Board members will review the file. If the committee members agree to a recommendation, the paralegal will be advised. If the committee members are unable to come to an agreement, the request will be forwarded to the Certifying Board for review and decision.
A response to the appeal will be provided to the paralegal no later than ten business days after receipt by NALA Headquarters.
The Certified Paralegal credential will be designated inactive and may not be used or claimed by a paralegal. During the period the Certified Paralegal credential is considered inactive, the paralegal may list the credential on a resume or job application as long as the inactive status is clear. The names of those whose Certified Paralegal credential is considered inactive will not appear in the Certified Paralegal directory on the NALA web site.
The following options will be available to the paralegal:
- The paralegal may retake the Certified Paralegal examination as a new candidate for certification. In consideration of the hardship, the committee may recommend or the board may approve a waiver of the examination application fee, and the paralegal would not be required to submit another application form. The committee may apply a time deadline for the waiver of the fee during which the examinee must retake the Certified Paralegal examination; or
- The paralegal may be awarded more time to complete the CLE requirements. The time period may not exceed one year.
- With this option, the requirements for recertification are the same as for all Certified Paralegals. The one year probation period plus the extension of up to one year will apply against the ensuring five year renewal period. The expiration date of the Certified Paralegal credential will not be adjusted forward to accommodate the extended time.
- The Chair may consider waiver of the re-certification fee. The re-certification fee may be waived only once for Certified Paralegals.
- If the requirements are not met within the extended time period, the certification will be revoked as it is for all others.
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