Membership Qualifications 

Active Members:

¨       Any individual who has successfully completed a curriculum of training as a paralegal/legal assistant or who is certified by a university, college, junior college or other approved school as having successfully completed a full course of studies prescribed for training as a legal assistant; provided, however, that all schools, curricula and certification shall be subject to the approval of this Association. And can provide licensed attorney attestation of current or recent (within the past 2 years) paralegal/legal assistant employment experience, also subject to approval of this Association.

¨       Any individual who has been continuously employed as a paralegal/legal assistant for a minimum of the past two (2) years, whose employer and a licensed attorney attest that the person is qualified as a paralegal/legal assistant.

¨       Any individual who has successfully completed the CLA/CP/ACP examination administered by the National Association of Legal Assistants ("NALA").  

Associate Members: 

¨      Those members of bar associations and of the education field endorsing the paralegal/legal assistant concept or who are involved in the promotion of the paralegal/legal assistant profession.

¨      Those persons directly involved in the supervision of paralegals/legal assistants.

Provisional Members:

¨       Any individual who does not meet the requirements for active membership, but who has been employed as a paralegal/legal assistant, within the last two (2) years.

¨       Any individual who is not employed as a paralegal/legal assistant, and who has successfully completed a curriculum of training as a paralegal/legal assistant or is certified by a university, college, junior college or other approved school within the past two (2) years, provided that all schools, curricula and certification shall be subject to the approval of this Association.

Student Members:

¨       Any individual who is a student in good standing in any university, college, junior college or other approved school pursuing a course of study as a paralegal/legal assistant, provided that all schools and curricula shall be subject to the approval of this Association.  A student shall be defined as one that is taking all paralegal/legal assistant courses offered and is not employed as a paralegal/legal assistant.  

Sustaining Members:

¨       Those individuals, law firms, corporations and paralegal/legal assistant program representatives who endorse the paralegal/legal assistant concept or who are actively involved in the promotion of the paralegal/legal assistant profession.

Lifetime Members:

¨       Any individual who is currently retired from being employed as a paralegal/legal assistant.

¨       Any member who has been TPA member for several years, has actively participated in meetings and events on a regular basis, and is contingent on the member continuing to be an active participating member. 

¨       This designation needs to be voted on by the Board of Directors and will require a 2/3 affirmative vote from the Board to approve the change of membership status.