Karen Belcher, RP
NFPA President
president@paralegals.org
October 29, 2002
GEORGIA PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION LAUDED FOR PRO BONO
The National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA) and The Affiliates are pleased to announce the selection of the Georgia Association of Paralegals as the recipient of NFPA's 2002 Association Pro Bono Award. The award is sponsored annually by the Affiliates to recognize an association that fulfills NFPA's pro bono motto: "Pro Bono - Paralegals Making a Difference".
The Georgia Association's Pro Bono Committee has trained its members to work with lawyers from the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation, the Cobb County Volunteer Probation Officer Program, Georgia Legal Services, and the DeKalb County Court to provide paralegal services across a wide spectrum of law: will drafting, temporary protective orders, criminal probation, estate planning, and domestic violence.
The Committee is adding animal law to its knowledge portfolio by sponsoring a major CLE seminar in that much-needed area. Animal law was emphasized at the Association's Community Service night in April 2002 when Second Chance Animal Rescues and Adoption provided the speakers.
The Association's Pro Bono Committee was formed in 1999 by Jennifer Kirkland, the Association's current president, and a former recipient of the Association's Individual Pro Bono Award. James C. West and Alexia T. ("Lex") Wells now co-chair the Committee, which has fourteen dedicated members and is growing monthly.
In addition to recognizing its volunteers, the Association publishes the Pro Bono News as a means of promoting the Pro Bono Committee's activities. This newsletter can be viewed at www.paralegals.org/Georgia and going to the Pro Bono pages.
The award was presented at NFPA's Fall Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. The name of the Georgia Association will be added to a plaque that hangs in NFPA headquarters, and a donation will be made by The Affiliates to a pro bono project designed by the association.
Past winners are the Massachusetts Paralegal Association, the Pittsburgh Paralegal Association, and the National Capital Area Paralegal Association.
The Affiliates is North America's leading legal staffing service and a division of Robert Half International. With 40 offices, The Affiliates specializes in the placement of attorneys and paralegals on a project and direct hire basis in law firms and corporate legal departments. Account Executives are experienced attorneys and paralegals skilled in identifying and matching client needs.
Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, NFPA is a non-profit professional organization representing more than 15,000 paralegals in the United States and Canada. NFPA is the national voice and the standard for excellence for the paralegal profession through its work on the issues of regulation, ethics and education.
Photos of the 2002 Fall Convention can be found at
www.paralegals.org/News/Photos/02Fall/award.htm
