.0203 General Course Approval

(a) Approval – Continuing education activities, not otherwise approved or accredited by the North Carolina State Bar Board of Continuing Legal Education, may be approved upon the written application of a sponsor, or of a certified paralegal on an individual program basis. An application for continuing paralegal education (CPE) approval shall meet the following requirements:

(1) If advance approval is requested by a sponsor, the application and supporting documentation (i.e., the agenda with timeline, speaker information and a description of the written materials) shall be submitted at least 45 days prior to the date on which the course or program is scheduled. If advance approval is requested by a certified paralegal, the application need not include a complete set of supporting documentation.

(2) If more than five certified paralegals request approval of a particular program, either in advance of the date on which the course or program is scheduled or subsequent to that date, the program will not be accredited unless the sponsor applies for approval of the program and pays the accreditation fee set forth in Rule .0204.

(3) In all other cases, the application and supporting documentation shall be submitted not later than 45 days after the date the course or program was presented.

(4) The application shall be submitted on a form furnished by the Board of Paralegal Certification.

(5) The application shall contain all information requested on the form.

(6) The application shall be accompanied by a course outline or brochure that describes the content, identifies the teachers, lists the time devoted to each topic and shows each date and location at which the program will be offered.

(7) The application shall include a detailed calculation of the total continuing paralegal education (CPE) hours and the hours of professional responsibility for the program.

(8) If the sponsor has not received notice of accreditation within 15 days prior to the scheduled date of the program, the sponsor should contact the Board of Paralegal Certification via telephone or e-mail.

(b) Announcement - Sponsors who have advance approval for courses from the Board of Paralegal Certification may include in their brochures or other course descriptions the information contained in the following illustration:

This course [or seminar or program] has been approved by the North Carolina State Bar Board of Paralegal Certification for continuing paralegal education credit in the amount of ____ hours, of which ____ hours will also apply in the area of professional responsibility. This course is not sponsored by the Board of Paralegal Certification.

History Note: Statutory Authority G.S. 84-23

Adopted by the Supreme Court August 18, 2005

Amendments Approved by the Supreme Court: August 27, 2013