HOUSTON PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION! AUGUST 20, 2012

Volume 2, Issue 02! Page 1

HPA pledges to provide programs of education and professional development to advance the professional development, objectives and goals of paralegals.

HPA will promote the paralegal profession by maintaining ethical conduct and the highest standards of integrity for governing its members.

HPA is dedicated to promoting the education and understanding of legal professionals and the general public, regarding the utilization of paralegals to assist attorneys in providing effective legal services.

HPA is an affiliate of the National Association of Legal Assistants, Inc. (NALA)

Table of Contents

2012-2013 HPA Executive ..................................Board! 1

................NALA CP Exam! 2

NALA ACP Trial Practice .............................................! 2

.......HPA Sept. Brown Bag! 3

.There’s An App For That! 4

Note from Newsletter ...................................Chair! 4

............Calendar of Events! 4

..................Get Connected! 4

..........Philanthropy & Fun! 5⚖ ⚖ ⚖ ⚖ ⚖ ⚖ ⚖ ⚖

Contact Info:PO Box 2466Houston, TX 77252Website: www.hpatx.usEmail: admin@hpatx.us

HPA Newsletter2012-2013 HPA Executive Board and Committee ChairsHPA held its annual meeting on August 9, 2012. An election was held for the 2012-2013 HPA Executive Board positions. Please join me in congratulating the following individuals on their positions with the Executive Board.

...................................................Christina Ladyman, CP! President.............................................Carla Valenzuela, CP! President-Elect

....................................................Roberta Taherivand! 1st VP - CLE...................................................Jesse Olivo! 2nd VP - Membership

................................................Jay Busey! 3rd VP - Public Relations...................................................................Brandy Meyer! Secretary

................................................Rhonda Harshbarger, CP! Treasurer..........................................................Gina Holder! Parliamentarian

...............................Kelly Corbin, TBLS-BCP, ACP! NALA Liaison...................................................................Jay Busey! Website Chair

.......................................................Cynthia Russo! Volunteer Chair..........................Kelly Corbin, TBLS-BCP, ACP! Newsletter Chair

HPA would like to give special thanks to all of the outgoing board members who served on the 2011-2012 Executive Board.

HOUSTON PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION (HPA) MISSION STATEMENT

HOUSTON PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION! AUGUST 20, 2012

Volume 2, Issue 02! Page 2

NALA CERTIFIED PARALEGAL EXAMThis section of our newsletter will host exam

preparation material for the NALA CP Exam. You will need to see next week’s newsletter for answers:

Legal Research Quiz1. A decision of an administrative agency is classified

as,a. statutory law.b.case law.c. common law.d.non of the above.

2. True or False. A per curiam opinion is a unanimous opinion of the entire court.

3. True or False. There is a separate digest to accompany to each of the reporters that contain U.S. Supreme Court Cases.

4. __________________ a matter adjudicated5. __________________ the thing speaks for itself

Interviewing Quiz 6. Human relat ions ski l ls are

measured bya. on’s ability to process the

work with the greatest degree of efficiency.

b.one’s ability to work with several individuals in a positive manner.

c. one’s ability to observe ethics rules to the letter.

d.one’s ability to avoid office politics and to ignore the office grapevine.

7. True or False. If the paralegal is requested by the client not to share specific information with the lawyer, the paralegal has an obligation to the client to keep the information confidential between them.

8. True or False. A fact is an event within the personal knowledge of the client or witness.

SPOTLIGHT ON TRIAL PRACTICE This course provides a broad picture of how a case proceeds through the courts, from trial court to appellate courts to the Supreme Court. The course reviews: ⚖ how local rules, state rules, and federal rules work together ⚖ what goes on in a courtroom, from the paralegal’s point of view and from the viewpoint of the courts, judges, lawyers, and juries

⚖ the technology hardware and software used in producing a trial ⚖ legal thinking, research, and writing, using formats and styles from across the country

The ACP course on Trial Practice consists of successful completion of 10 modules of text, assessments, and assignments. The modules and their subjects are as follows:

⚖ Methods of Document Management ⚖ Witness Preparat ion ⚖ Elect ron ic Presentations ⚖ Scheduling Orders, Motions, Voir Dire ⚖ Trial Notebooks ⚖ Trial Procedure ⚖ Verdicts and Judgments ⚖ Appeals ⚖ Writing Briefs ⚖ Upcoming Issues.

ACP PROGRAM - CURRICULUM BASED CERTIFICATIONAnswers: 1. b, 2. false, 3. false, 4. res judicata or adjudicated, 5. res ipsa loquitor, 6. b, 7. false, 8. true.

HOUSTON PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION! AUGUST 20, 2012

Volume 2, Issue 02! Page 3

Lunch and Learn CLE

Senior Housing and the Fair Act

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

! ! ! ! ! Thursday, September 13, 2012! ! ! ! ! 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

1233 West Loop South, Suite 1240Houston, TX 77027(713) 752.8344

The cost will be $25 for Non-Members and Free for Members of HPA

This CLE is approved for 1.5 hours of CLE credit for NALA and TBLS Civil Trial Law.

Speaker:! Daniel Sternthal, J.D.! dsternthal@seyfarth.com! ! Seyfarth Shaw, LLP!! (713) 238-1882

! Mr. Sternthal is a Senior Counsel in the Corporate Department in the Houston office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP.  He represents clients doing business within the healthcare industry and represents providers across the continuum of care including individual and group medical practices, hospitals, long term care facilities, and ancillary service providers.  Mr. Sternthal concentrates his practice on advising clients on issues relating to regulatory, operational, and corporate matters. ! In January 2012, Mr. Sternthal was appointed to the Legal Committee of LeadingAge as a Core Member for a three year term.  LeadingAge is a national association that represents the interest of over 5,400 not for profit long term care providers.  Mr. Sternthal has repeatedly been named by Texas Monthly as one of the Texas Rising Stars in the field of health law.  In 2008, Mr. Sternthal received the UNT Time and Talent Award for Distinguished Service.  Prior to relocating to Houston, he served as Vice-President and President-Elect of the Rotary Club of Northeast Austin and was an active Board Member with the Austin Groups for the Elderly and the Childhood Development Center.

This event is sponsored by:! ! ! !Atkinson-Baker Court Reporters1001 Texas AvenueSuite 1400, Houston

Patty Haines, Client Services Director713-654-7488phaines@depo.com

HOUSTON PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION! AUGUST 20, 2012

Volume 2, Issue 02! Page 4

THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT TM

This section is dedicated to mobile apps that can help us all in our daily professional lives.

This week’s app: DROPBOX (free)

Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring all your photos, docs, and videos anywhere. This means that any file you save to your Dropbox will automatically save to all your computers, phones, and even the Dropbox website.

Dropbox also makes it super easy to share with other, whether you are a student or professional, parent or grandparent. Even if you accidentally spill a latte on your laptop, have no fear! You can relax knowing that Dropbox always has you covered, and non or your stuff will ever be lost. www.dropbox.com

Available for Mac, Windows, Linux, and Mobile (Android, iPhone, iPad, Blackberry and Kindle Fire).

LETTER FROM THE NEWSLETTER CHAIR

You may have noticed that the newsletter format has changed slightly. Something that you may not have noticed were some of the newsletter’s hidden features.

HYPERLINKS For your convenience, the newsletter now contains hyperlinks throughout each issue. Any place you see a traditional hyperlink such as www.hpatx.us, you may click that link and be taken to a site that website. The Calendar of Events also contains hyperlinks. Simply click on the calendar item and you will be taken to a website with more information on that event. If you are unsure whether an item contains a hyperlink, simply hover your cursor over a word and see if a link appears.

NALA PAGE Each issue will now contain a NALA page focusing on the CP exam ACP Curriculum Based Certification. The CP Exam section will contain CP exam review questions with answers and each week, we will spotlight one ACP program.

THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT TM It seems the entire world has gone mobile. We can’t survive with our smart phones, tablets, laptops, and more. This section is dedicated to mobile apps that can help us in our daily professional lives.

GET CONNECTED Features the many ways that you can get and stay connected with HPA.

I hope you find the new format informative and user friendly.

Get Connected

FACEBOOKHPA’s Facebook Fan page is open to al l . Member only information cannot be found

on the Facebook fan page.

LINKED INGroup for HPA Members only.

WEBwww.hpatx.us

CalendarSeptember 1, 2012Executive Board Meeting

September 13, 2012HPA Brown Bag CLE - Senior Housing and the Fair Act

September 1-30, 2012NALA CP Exam date (window)

October 3-5, 2012TXPD TAPS, Addison, TX

October 23, 2012Texas Paralegal Day

October 25, 2012HPA Brown Bag CLE - TBA

HPA August BirthdaysErica CavazosDr. Deanna DiamondKristi HydeJoAnn McCarty, CPShonda WagnerCarla Valenzuela, CP

HOUSTON PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION! AUGUST 20, 2012

Volume 2, Issue 02! Page 5

ACROSS

1. A legal case (Latin)

4. Not micro

9. The life of Steve Zissou, e.g.

10. Search paper

11. Ha-ha

13. Like some questions

15. ___ and tuck

16. Zip

17. “Good job!”

19. In ___

21. Make law

23. The best

24. Take to court

25. Went with feathers, in old days

26. Samuel ___

28. Goes bad

29. Rough reading

31. Fiasco

33. Sonia ___

34. Throng

DOWN

1. Go against

2. Cruel and ___

3. Bit of legislation

4. They speak for themselves, in a cliche

5. Order often follows it

6. Type of poker

7. Opposed

8. Bar, legally

12. Hard to break

14. Came to

18. Cover story

19. Mr. Bates, e.g.

20. Ignore the alarm

22. Series of ‘70s disaster movies

24. Warm wind from Africa

25. Justices have them for life

26. Many a robber’s undoing

27. Judge’s yell, on TV

30. Hear a case

32. Tom Hanks movie

A Legal Puzzle

PHILANTHROPY & FUN

T h e Ho u s t o n B a r Association's Adopt-A-S c h o o l C o m m i t t e e i s s p o n s o r i n g a S c h o o l Su p p l y D r i v e for B.C. Elmore Middle School. 

The drive is scheduled for August 20 -3 1 , 2012 and benefits the students of B.C. Elmore Middle School.

Items needed are: loose-leaf notebook paper, sp i ra l notebooks, #2 pencils, black/blue pens, colored pencils and art supplies of all kinds.

Donations can be sent to or dropped off at the HBA Office, 1001 Fannin, Suite 1 300, 77002 . Monetar y donations are also accepted.

For more information contact Claire Nelson at 713-759-1133 or clairen@hba.org.Education is the most power ful

weapon which you can use to change the world - Nelson Mandela

Answers to the puzzle may be found here.