Exam (elaborations)
PAR1501 EXAM PACK
- Course
- PAR1501
- Institution
- University Of South Africa (Unisa)
Exam of 74 pages for the course PAR1501 at Unisa (PAR1501 EXAM PACK)
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PAR1501STUDY
PACK
2023
WELL ELABORATE AND
SUMMARIZED STUDY PACK
,PAR1501/1
CONTENTS
STUDY UNIT 1: Introduction to paralegal practice ......................................................................................... 1
1. LEARNING OUTCOMES ........................................................................................................................ 1
2. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................... 1
3. HISTORY OF PARALEGAL PRACTICE ...............................................................................................1
4. WHAT IS A PARALEGAL? ..................................................................................................................... 3
5. FUTURE OF PARALEGAL PRACTICE .................................................................................................9
6. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................................ 9
7. SELF-ASSESSMENT ........................................................................................................................... 10
8. SOURCES REFERRED TO IN THIS STUDY UNIT ............................................................................10
STUDY UNIT 2: Role of paralegals in legal practice .................................................................................... 12
1. LEARNING OUTCOMES ..................................................................................................................... 12
2. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 12
3. WHY WE NEED PARALEGALS .......................................................................................................... 12
4. ROLE OF PARALEGALS WITH REFERENCE TO THE CONSTITUTION ......................................... 13
5. ROLE OF PARALEGALS IN LEGAL PRACTICE ................................................................................ 15
6. WHAT PARALEGALS DO .................................................................................................................... 16
7. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................................... 17
8. SELF-ASSESSMENT ........................................................................................................................... 17
9. SOURCES REFERRED TO IN THIS STUDY UNIT ............................................................................18
STUDY UNIT 3: Formal recognition of paralegals ........................................................................................ 19
1. LEARNING OUTCOMES ..................................................................................................................... 19
2. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 19
3. CURRENT STATUS OF PARALEGALS IN SOUTH AFRICA .............................................................. 19
4. RECOGNITION OF THE ROLE OF PARALEGALS ............................................................................ 20
5. TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION OF PARALEGALS ........................................................................ 23
6. PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND ORGANISATIONS FOR PARALEGALS ............................ 23
7. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................................... 24
8. SELF-ASSESSMENT ........................................................................................................................... 24
9. SOURCES REFERRED TO IN THIS STUDY UNIT .............................................................................24
STUDY UNIT 4: Practical skills for paralegals .............................................................................................. 26
1. LEARNING OUTCOMES ..................................................................................................................... 26
2. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 26
3. GENERAL GUIDELINES ..................................................................................................................... 26
4. PARALEGAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS ..........................................................................................27
5. PARALEGAL ADMINI STRATIVE SKILLS ..........................................................................................37
6. PARALEGAL BOOKKEEPING SKILLS .............................................................................................. 46
7. NEGOTIATION, MEDIATION AND ARBITRATION .............................................................................51
8. COMMUNITY EDUCATION SKILLS ( WORKSHOPS) ....................................................................... 58
9. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................................... 65
10. SELF-ASSESSMENT ........................................................................................................................... 65
11. SOURCES REFERRED TO IN THIS STUDY UNIT.............................................................................65
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ........................................................................................................... 66
GLOSSARY .................................................................................................................................................. 67
PAR1501/1/2016-2017
iii
,PAR1501/1
Dear Student
Welcome to the module, Introduction to Paralegal Studies – PAR1501.
We are sure that you are very excited to embark on the first step to becoming a paralegal.
This module is your first module dealing specifically with the career you have chosen. In this
module we will introduce you to paralegal practice.
You probably fall into one of the following three groups:
You have not worked in a legal environment and would like to know more about a
paralegal career.
You have worked in a legal environment and want to develop more skills.
You have not decided which specific legal career you want to follow and hope that this
field of study will help you to learn more about the legal profession.
Before you can study the legal subjects necessary to become a paralegal, it is very
important for you to understand what a paralegal is and what paralegals do.
The following are the most important questions to consider:
What is a paralegal?
What is the difference between a paralegal and a lawyer?
What is the role of the paralegal in legal practice?
Where do paralegals work?
What do paralegals do?
How are paralegals regulated?
What skills should a paralegal have?
In South Africa, paralegal practice is quite a new career and is still in its developing stages.
This means that some of these questions still need to be answered. In this module we will try
to answer all the questions we can and inform you about the various debates that exist
where there are still no answers.
PAR1501 consists of the following study units:
Study unit 1: Introduction to paralegal practice
In this study unit we will look at the historical origins of paralegals, what a paralegal is and
what makes a paralegal different from other legal professionals. We will also look at the
future of paralegal practice in South Africa.
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, PAR1501/1
Study unit 2: Role of paralegals
In this study unit we will look at the role that paralegals play in the legal profession and the
various places where paralegals work. We will also look at how paralegals promote the
values enshrined in the South African Constitution, in particular the rights protected in the
Bill of Rights.
Study unit 3: Formal recognition of paralegals
In this study unit we will look at whether paralegals enjoy formal recognition and what
developments have taken place in order to provide them with formal recognition. We will also
look at the different ways in which paralegals are trained and the associations and
organisations for paralegals that exist.
Study unit 4: Practical skills for paralegals
In this study unit we will look at the practical skills that a paralegal must possess in the
workplace.
How to use this study guide:
There is no prescribed textbook for this module. You must study this study guide together
with the tutorial letters for this module.
At the beginning of each study unit there is a box with the heading “Learning outcomes”.
The contents of these boxes set out the most important aspects covered in each specific
study unit. At the end of each study unit you should refer back to the learning outcomes and
ensure that you have achieved all of them for that study unit.
You will notice that various activities are set out in this study guide. You will need to work
through all these on your own. We will provide feedback in a further Tutorial Letter 201 so
that you can assess whether or not you answered the activities completely and correctly. It is
very important that you complete all the activities before you look at Tutorial Letter 201 so
that you can see what you understand and what you don’t understand about the work
covered in this module. Keep all your answers to the activities so that you can refer back to
them when working through Tutorial Letter 201.
As this is an introductory module, you will be provided with some background information
on paralegal practice. This background information is necessary for you to understand
where paralegals come from and where you as a paralegal will fit in, but we will not examine
you on these aspects. All such discussions will contain an icon at the beginning which will
indicate that you do not have to study these sections for assignment or examination
purposes. However, you should not just ignore these sections but read through them
attentively as they will help you understand paralegal practice better and will provide you
with the background needed to understand the other work covered in this module.
This is your first module dealing with paralegal practice and therefore you will be introduced
to many new terms. Where necessary we have explained certain terms throughout this study
guide as they are introduced to you. However, the study guide may also contain other terms
that might be unfamiliar to you. You will find a glossary at the end of this study guide which
contains an alphabetical list of all these terms and their meanings. Such terms are indicated
in italics throughout this study guide when used for the first time.
v
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