HISTORY OF LSPA
The Louisiana State Paralegal Association was formed in 1986 as the result of a group of paralegals from Baton Rouge, Monroe and Lake Charles meeting at a celebration for graduates of the Paralegal Studies Program at LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Inasmuch as our profession was at that time growing on a statewide level, it was felt that there was a great need to organize people in our field. Soon after, regional committees began working to locate paralegals and legal assistant in the state and to identify common goals and objectives in the profession. The main objectives were found to relate to educational and professional advancement. LSPA has worked with these goals in mind throughout its existence.
The first annual meeting was held on September 20, 1986 with a group of charter members from twelve Louisiana cities in attendance. Since that time, membership has continued to grow. LSPA is a statewide association divided into eight districts with a representative from each district serving on the board of directors as a liaison for their area. LSPA holds an annual meeting, seminars and workshops in different cities within the state throughout each year.
The Rochelle Scholarship, awarded by LSPA each year to a worthy student enrolled in a paralegal education program in Louisiana, was created in memory of Carol Rochelle, a member of LSPA’s Formation Committee, who was killed in an automobile accident while returning to her home in Lake Charles from a formation committee meeting in Alexandria.
In 1992, LSPA became an affiliate of NALA, which is a national organization of paralegals from around the United States and its territories. NALA offers a national certification program for paralegals, the CP/CLA examination. Also in 1992, LSPA passed a resolution adopting a definition of “paralegal” which is reflective of the functions of paralegals and the realities of their work.
A very busy year, 1992 also saw the beginning of a Louisiana law-based state certification program for paralegals. Committees worked diligently to assess the educational validity of such an exam and to determine what subjects should be tested in the exam. Once those initial steps had been taken, committees of lawyers, judges and paralegals from around the state were formed and exam topics assigned to committees for the purpose of drafting test questions. Work on this project continued for four years, until 1996, when the first LCP® (Louisiana Certified Paralegal) was administered. It is now administered in two locations around the state twice a year, in the spring and fall.
In 2005, the Louisiana State Paralegal Association celebrated its 20th anniversary at its annual meeting in Monroe, Louisiana, at which “a good time was had by all.” In 2010-2011, we held our LSPA 25th Anniversary Celebration with our 25th Annual Meeting in Alexandria, Louisiana, the home of many, many quarterly board meetings and several annual meetings.
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