HAWAII PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION

Hawaii Paralegal Association ("HPA") members are entitled to many benefits, including HPA's quarterly newsletter The Hawaii Paralegal Reporter, informative mailings/brochures from both local and mainland sources, job bank notices, seminars on various legal and business topics, participation in general and annual membership meetings, a membership directory, web site, and more. And by virtue of HPA’s membership in the National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA), HPA members enjoy many additional benefits. NFPA is the largest national paralegal association with 55 member associations representing over 15,000 paralegals across the country. HPA is an active participant in NFPA. HPA members serve on NFPA committees, send representatives to annual and semi-annual meetings, and have hosted a Region I Business and Educational Conference. Please see below for more detailed information about membership benefits.

Benefits of your membership in HPA include:

• HPA’s quarterly newsletter, the Hawaii Paralegal Reporter, keeps you informed about educational opportunities, upcoming events, and issues and developments in the local legal community.

• HPA seminars on various legal and business topics further your education and improve your skills, to keep you current and competitive.

• HPA general and annual membership meetings allow you to influence the direction of HPA, and provide excellent networking opportunities.

• HPA’s membership directory gives you direct access to the paralegal population of Hawaii.

• HPA job bank notices keep you on top of the few job openings in our present economy.

• Informative mailings from local and mainland sources make you aware of miscellaneous events or offers of interest to paralegals.

• HPA’s affiliation with NFPA provides you a host of additional benefits, as outlined below.

And HPA’s affiliation with the National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA) gives you the ability, as an HPA member:

• To improve your paralegal knowledge and keep current on important issues and developments in the paralegal profession by consulting NFPA’s National Paralegal Reporter.

• To conduct research using NFPA’s web site (which has links to over 1,000 other internet legal research sites) at http://www.paralegals.org.

• To network and trade information or opinions with local and mainland paralegals:

• via NFPA’s email list-serve groups – over 500 paralegals registered – in the following areas: Bankruptcy/Collections, Corporate Law, Criminal Law, Family Law, Freelance Paralegals, Independent Paralegals, Intellectual Property, Law Office Management, Labor Law, Litigation, General Paralegal Discussions, Paralegal Education, Paralegal Students, Probate/Estates/ Trusts, Real Estate Law, and Technology;

• via NFPA’s public discussion groups at NFPA’s web site: Freelance Paralegal Networking Group, Independent Paralegal Networking Group, Law Office Management, Paralegal Education, Paralegal Department Management, Paralegal Practice, and Cyberparalegal; or

• through internet relay chat sessions, or "online chat groups" at NFPA’s web site.

• To use NFPA publications and research results, for example:

• To increase attorney awareness of cost-efficient utilization of paralegals with NFPA’s Paralegal Responsibilities pamphlet and thereby obtain more challenging assignments;

• To argue for a raise on the basis of NFPA’s annual Paralegal Compensation and Benefits Report; or

• To benefit your client by providing your attorney with information about the recoverability of paralegal fees.

• To access timely information about changes and developments in your field through your NFPA Representatives.

• To rely on NFPA for assistance if, for example, the state legislature considers any legislation that might affect paralegals. (Remember, this happened in 1992, when House Bill 3004 and Senate Bill 2669, both regarding UPL, defined the practice of law so broadly that any paralegal would almost by definition be guilty of UPL.)

• To influence the future direction of the paralegal profession, through the participation of your NFPA Representatives in the establishment of NFPA policies.

• To enjoy discounts on car rental and hotel rates; dental, vision, hearing aids and prescription drugs; glasses and contact lenses; overnight delivery; and messaging and pager services.

• To take advantage of other benefits, such as professional liability insurance for paralegals, disability income insurance, health insurance and life insurance, and credit union membership.

• To use "RP" on your resume by passing a national paralegal exam (PACE), without having to travel to the mainland.