List and briefly describe five of the paralegal specialties discussed in Chapter 2 in the text.?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Student answers might include the following:• Litigation-Paralegals who specialize in litigation assistance work with litigation (trial) attorneys. Litigation paralegals work for all sizes and types of practices. They usually specialize in a certain type of  litigation, such as personal injury, product liability, or specifically working on behalf of plaintiffs or defendants.• Corporate law-Paralegals who specialize in corporate law may work for a corporation, in its legal department, or for a law firm that specializes in corporate law. Tasks performed by corporate law paralegals include preparing documents and filing them with the appropriate state agency to incorporate a new business, keeping corporate records, and organizing shareholders' meetings.• Contract law-Paralegals who specialize in this area may work for a corporation's legal department, for a large law firm, or for a government agency. Their tasks may include preparing contracts, reviewing contract terms related to compliance or breach, and researching the law governing contracts.• Real estate law-Paralegals who specialize in real estate work for a variety of employers, including small law firms, real estate departments in large law firms, corporations or other firms that buy or sell real property, and banks. Some of the tasks that they perform include drafting contracts for the sale of real estate, drafting mortgage agreements, drafting and recording deeds, and scheduling closings.• Personal-injury law-Legal assistants who work in personal-injury law work in litigation.  They tend to specialize in negligence cases that have resulted in personal injury to the client, such as auto accidents. They may also work for insurance companies investigating claims.• Insurance law-Paralegals working in this area may work for law firms that defend insurance companies in litigation or they may work directly for insurance companies.  Their tasks may include monitoring compliance with government insurance regulations, reviewing insurance contracts, investigating claims, and assisting in litigation. Insurance also is often an important factor for clients involved in personal-injury, malpractice, and other litigation.• Employment and labor law-Paralegals who work in employment and labor law may work for law firms, businesses, or government agencies. Often paralegals specialize in just one of the many areas of employment law, such as workers' compensation, employment discrimination, wrongful termination, pension plans, or retirement and disability income. Paralegals who work in employment and labor law may also work with various administrative agencies, including workers' compensation boards.• Estate planning and probate administration-Paralegals who specialize in this area assist with tasks such as drafting wills and documents required to set up trusts, probating estates, gathering information relating to debts and assets of the deceased, or locating heirs.• Bankruptcy law-Paralegals who work in bankruptcy law may work in large or small firms. They assist entities with the bankruptcy process, a detailed process governed by federal law.• Intellectual property law-Paralegals working in this area may work for law firms or in corporate legal departments. The type of work in which they may be involved includes registering copyrights, patents, or trademarks with the federal government and other activities relating to registration.• Environmental law-Paralegals specializing in environmental law work for government agencies, state agencies, large law firms, environmental law firms, and corporations. They perform a variety of tasks, from compliance work to litigation.• Family law-Paralegals specializing in family law could work for a small family law practitioner, a family law department in a large firm, or a state or local agency that assists people with family-related problems. Tasks that are performed by family law paralegals include interviewing clients, researching the law, and preparing documents to be filed with the court.• Criminal law-Paralegals who specialize in criminal law may work for public prosecutors, public defenders, or criminal defense attorneys. Criminal litigation is similar to civil litigation in many respects, and the kinds of work performed by litigation paralegals also apply in the criminal law context.