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Savvy Searching for Paralegals:  Investigations equal searches.  Searches come in many shapes and sizes and can be regulated by various laws and statutes.  This seminar will introduce paralegals on how different categories of searches could be used to support daily work tasks, the permissible purposes that allow and limit searches, and the various types of searches and sources of information available.

As President of Edward R. LeFevour and Associates, Ltd., Kathryn is currently licensed in the state of Illinois and Wisconsin as a Private Detective.  Kathryn is a Professional Certified Investigator (PCI), which is recognized by ASIS International as the highest professional investigator designation.

FDCPA Landmines, Asset Search Techniques, Claims Database Tips, Litigation Prep and More!

Enhance Your Medical Record Retrieval, Organization, Review and Summarization Skills

How Can The Legal Function Add Value to Business?: This presentation will discuss how law firms/in-house teams can leverage machine learning technology in their day-to-day business operations. The main technology discussed will be contract management software. However, the presenter will also touch on legal spend software, matter management systems and e-discovery technologies.  

Edward Little is a former Illinois family law / e-discovery attorney residing in San Francisco, CA. Currently, he is an Account Executive with Contract Wrangler, a cutting edge AI Contract Management Software. Edward is a cross-trained attorney with extensive experience in leveraging technology within the legal profession.  In 2013 he received his B.S from Southern Illinois University- Edwardsville. In 2016 he received his Juris Doctorate from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Additionally, he holds an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis, Mo. 

Power Up Your Legal Writing, Editing and Formatting Skills

Looking for CLE credits?  Look no further and attend the Wisconsin Paralegal Association 2021 Virtual Annual Seminar on May 7, 2021 featuring 6 speakers including one on Ethics for 6.0 CLE credits (1.0 EPR). 

Click here to check out prices and register for the seminar!  Please contact southcentral@wisconsinparalegal.org or president@wisconsinparalegal.org with any questions about the seminar. 

CLE Topics will cover the following topics: Civil Rights, Redistricting & Voter Rights, Criminal Law, Cybersecurity, Insurance Recovery Litigation, and Ethics. Early bird registration ends on April 15, 2021.  Final registration ends on April 30, 2021. 

CLEs sponsored by Paralegal Association of Wisconsin qualify for NFPA certifications. 

"See" you there!

CLE Seminar: Top Ten Writing Tips

NFPA Webinar: Income Taxes in Decedent Estates 
Tuesday, May 11, 2021 12:00 PM Central (CDT) - 1:00 PM Central (CDT)

Click here to register!

Tax season is an all-year event for the estate planning and administration paralegal. Decedent's are usually still required to file a final income tax return for the year of death. This course will provide a detailed overview of the unique challenges in marshaling information to prepare the final Form 1040, as well as tips and tricks in the hunt for that data. We'll also review the estate's own income tax return (Form 1041) and its own unique characteristics and complexities, and its impact on beneficiaries.3) You will be able to recognize various ways paralegals can assist attorneys when working on a commercial real estate transaction

Cost is $25.00 for Members | $50.00 for non-members
This webinar is worth 1.0 CLE Credit

About the Presenter
Donald P. Bristol, RP®, Pa.C.P. is an experienced Estates and Trusts Paralegal with 16 years' experience. He’s highly skilled in all aspects of complex estate and trust administration, including preparation of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware probate related forms and associated tasks, formal accountings and other court-related filings, preparation of state and federal death tax returns and gift tax returns, and preparation and filing of federal and state fiduciary income tax returns.

In October 2020, Don was elected to a two-year term as Director of Region IV of the National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA®). The Region IV Director is responsible for helping local associations in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and West Virginia. Region Directors are the main liaison between member associations and other NFPA Board members.

Don is a long time and active member of the Chester County Paralegal Association, having served in the past in all Officer positions, and as CLE Coordinator, Website Coordinator, and NFPA Primary Delegate. He also served as webinar coordinator for NFPA® 2018-2020. He received his Certificate in Paralegal Studies from Villanova University. Don maintains the PACE Registered Paralegal® (RP®) and Pa.C.P. Pennsylvania Certified Paralegal (Pa.C.P.) credentials. He obtained a Piano Performance Bachelor's Degree and Piano Pedagogy Master's Degree from West Chester University.

Using Empathy and Competence to Deliver Outstanding Legal Services

Learn negotiation strategies and preparation tactics to utilize next time your case goes to mediation.

Tips and Secrets for Gathering Important Electronic Evidence

Join us for an expert panel discussion about the Legal Paraprofessional Pilot Project. The Pilot Project launched March 1, 2021, which is intended to increase access to civil legal representation in tenant-landlord and family law cases where one or both parties typically appear without legal representation. The Pilot Project permits legal paraprofessionals, under the supervision of a Minnesota attorney, to provide legal advice and, in some cases, represent a client in court in these areas.

If you missed the April presentation by Maren Schroeder or want to learn more, tune in for this session. The panelists will provide different insights into the Pilot Project.

If you have any questions, please contact the Litigation Sectional Co-Chairs (Stefanie Lee and Tara Gardell) at mpalitsectional@gmail.com.

Speakers: Kimberly Larson, Gregory Richard, Tiffany Doherty-Schooler, Maren Schroeder, Pam Wandzel

This 60-minute session will review the basics of Google for workplace use.  A demonstration will be provided to highlight the basics as well as more advanced features of storing data and information, saving important files, and leveraging Microsoft Word and Excel.

Dr. Paul Busceni earned his doctorate in Education Leadership and Organizational Change from Roosevelt University, Chicago, Illinois, in 2000, and celebrates a twenty-three year history of teaching, learning, and advocacy.  He began his career in the Chicago north suburbs as teacher, principal, and associate superintendent of schools in P-12, eventually transitioning to leadership positions in Colleges of Education and Human Development at various institutions of higher learning.  He focused on business during his undergraduate tenure, but quickly realized his interests were in teaching and learning, and community action and awareness.  Progressing into graduate school, he became a staunch advocate for human rights and social justice.  He is a member of the LGBTQ Tucson Chamber of Commerce, volunteers for other philanthropic organizations, and is a reflection of his alma mater’s motto dedicated to the enlightenment of the human spirit.  He became a voice for legislative action with state Boards of Education as well as accrediting bodies, is a recognized educator and speaker, has spoken at professional conferences throughout the United States, and was keynote speaker in Leeds, England on international education.  He has been a consistent thought leader in areas of curriculum, instruction, assessment, accreditation, faculty development, and online/distance learning, and has written and reviewed grants for local, state, and national agencies.  He is a member of Kappa Delta Pi and is always seeking ways to give back to the various communities who helped make him the person he is today.  His greatest aspiration is to complete his debut novel and become the next great American writer.

Handle Any Task That Comes Your Way

Topic: The Impact of Statutes on Civil Litigation

Statutes have a significant impact on tort litigation. There may be express remedies for statutory breaches, as in cases involving Civil Damage Act claims, or remedies may be implied for statutory violations. Most commonly, however, a statutory violation will provide a basis that violation of a statute is negligence per se. This discussion will focus on the issues involved in using statutes in civil litigation.

Speaker: Mike Steenson, Bell Distinguished Professor of Law at Mitchell Hamline School of Law

The Paralegal Project Management Toolkit:  Designed for “accidental project managers” – those who suddenly find themselves trying to manage projects as part of their day-to-day jobs -- this program features a highly interactive scenario-based session by immersion into an actual project. Through experiential learning, participants discover a consistent process and repeatable framework they can use to effectively manage project communications, tasks, schedule, scope, quality, and budget. Participants will leave the program with a “toolkit” containing checklists and templates they can use immediately on-the-job to improve how they manage projects in today's fast-paced legal environments. This program is appropriate for all paralegals, regardless of experience or practice area.

A former Project Manager for Winston & Strawn, Trish Uhl has 20+ years of experience as a seasoned trainer, facilitator, project manager, change manager, consultant, and coach.

As a globally recognized Project Management Professional (PMP®) and Certified Professional in Learning & Performance (CPLP®) Trish is recognized for her passion for peer development. She has facilitated project management workshops throughout the United States and in the Middle East.

Trish is a long-time speaker at the Illinois Paralegal Association (IPA) Education Conferences and a contributing author to multiple books on the topics of project management, sales, learning & performance, and technology & teams.

To learn more about Trish Uhl’s body of work, visit her Amazon.com Author Page at: http://amazon.com/author/trishuhl.

This course, taught by family law attorneys, is designed to enhance paralegals' skills at assisting in the preparation and assisting with motion practice, family law orders and decrees, obtaining and evaluating financial information, family law case intake, and child custody and visitation issues. It also examines ethics in the practice of family law, including confidentiality and conflicts of interest.

Wills, Trusts, POAs, Health Care Decisions, Tax Returns and More Essential Documents and Tools

Topic: Courtroom Basics for Paraprofessionals

This CLE will go over the Minnesota rules of court regarding decorum, procedure, evidentiary rules and offer some tips on appearing before a judicial officer. This class is intended to be approachable and interesting for paraprofessionals who are expanding their practice into court appearances under the Legal Paraprofessional Pilot Project.

Speaker: Susan Mundahl, Esq

It takes just one error to complicate corporate filings. Rejections can cost you or your client time and sometimes money. This webinar will cover how to avoid making mistakes for corporate formation and amendment filings and many other important points.

Effective Legal Research – Because Your Career Depends On It:  Ever wondered what separates the legal profession’s most successful professionals from the mediocre….or what separates those legal professionals who always seem to get the more interesting, thought-provoking assignments from those who get stuck with the mundane, mind-numbing assignments?  Effective Legal Research skills.  Sharpened and perfected Legal Research skills are absolutely essential and the outcome of a client’s case can hinge entirely and only upon the effectiveness of the legal research conducted.  If longevity in your career as a paralegal is important to you, knowing how to conduct effective legal research is critical.  Come learn how to further hone your research skills to be more indispensable to the attorneys you work with and to avoid some of the pitfalls that will undeniably befall the ineffective researcher.

Nicholas Kourvetaris is an attorney at the law firm of O’Hagan Meyer. As a litigator with two decades of experience, Nicholas has served as a trusted legal advisor to a wide range of clients in multiple industries, including business clients, school districts, forest preserve districts, zoological societies, medical centers, homeowners and construction-related entities. He has extensive litigation experience in defense of matters throughout Illinois involving catastrophic bodily injuries and death, premises liability, food poisoning, bed bugs, wage garnishment, contract disputes, breach of fiduciary duty, dram shop, property damage, construction litigation, and housing, gender and age discrimination.

To date, Nicholas has tried 34 jury trials to verdict in Cook, McHenry and Will counties, including achieving 17 outright defense verdicts (one of which a Cook County jury returned in three minutes after a week-long trial).

Nicholas also teaches legal research & writing and torts at Loyola University Chicago’s Institute for Paralegal Studies and was a student-selected Professor of the Year in 2016.

Get the Responses You Want More Quickly and Effectively
Acting as a center of communication between client, attorney, doctors, lienholders and insurance
companies can be overwhelming. However, strong communication skills can help you keep things under
control and eliminate time lost on miscommunications. How do your skills stack up? This program will
show you communication best practices so you can get quicker and better responses. Sharpen your
communication skills and tailor your style to your audience - register today!
 

Hosted by the Tampa Bay Paralegal Association

Ethics and the Paralegal: It's the Real World Out There!: Join Caren Mansfield and Sharon Patterson for a real world discussion of Ethics as a paralegal. Review the Codes of Ethics of NFPA, NALA and the ABA. Touch on how knowledge of ethics is critical due to what’s going on today in technology, interactions with others, working from home, security issues, social media and working with clients. Learn about what not to do from past mistakes of other paralegals. This will be a fast paced and fun look at how ethics affects paralegals every day.

A Crash Course on the Big Issues
While any legal ethics issue should be treated as a big issue, confidentiality, conflicts of interest
and unauthorized practice of law pose ever-present risks for every legal professional. This course
is designed to introduce paralegals to the many ways in which these central tenets affect daily
actions. Learn what the rules mean and get practical advice on how you can take an always-on
approach to staying ethical - register today!

This course is designed to enhance paralegals' skills at assisting with family law case intake, working with divorce clients and opposing counsel, obtaining and evaluating financial information, and assisting with child custody and visitation issues. Paralegals will learn about recent developments in Illinois family law, and they will be prepared to handle ethical issues that arise in family law practice.

Stop Worrying About Misplacing Critical Documents

Join this free presentation to learn the roles that paralegals can have in gaining justice and stability for the clients of Tahirih Justice Center.

Disputes and claims have been a part of construction projects for many years and oftentimes drag out well after the completion of the project,tying up valuable resources and adding costs. Actively managing the dispute or claim or, even better yet, helping avoid the claim or dispute entirely, saves time and money for all the parties involved.

This workshop discusses the concept of Dispute Resolution Boards/Dispute Review Boards (DRBs) and how they have been used for many years on all types of construction projects to help contracting parties attain better project delivery. A Dispute Board (DB) is a board of impartial professionals formed at the beginning of the project to follow construction progress, encourage dispute avoidance, and assist in the resolution of disputes for the duration of the project.

By having a DRB start at the beginning of a project, the DRB can often help involved parties avoid a dispute by being proactive with the parties in getting issues settled and avoiding a dispute altogether. The conversation will provide an overview of the DRB process and how it can help achieve the maximum benefits of dispute avoidance as well as timely resolution.

Presented by DeAndra Roache’, Esq. of Cynergis Dispute Resolution Services and Elizabeth A. Tippin, Esq. President, Dispute Resolution Board Foundation, North America

For more information and to register click HERE. 

One hour of CLE credit will be offered to the surrounding MCLE states. If you miss the livestream, it will be available on the MSBA CLE catalog. 

Learn how to obtain information on judicial preferences and help in identifying preferred and problem jurors.

Ensure a Smooth, Problem-Free Closing