NALA CP study guide
NALA CP · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Certified Paralegal (CP®) credential is a professional certification administered through NALA, which describes it as the only nationally accredited paralegal certification and as a gold-standard credential and career-long commitment. It is built for working paralegals who want independent verification of their knowledge, skills, and commitment to the profession rather than a certificate of completion from a single course. The NALA CP study guide has 7 sections and about 1,752 words.
01Civil Litigation
Civil litigation moves from pleadings through discovery to trial and appeal. A candidate must know the pleading sequence: complaint, service of process, answer, and the responsive pleadings - counterclaim (against the plaintiff), cross-claim (against a co-party), and third-party claim (against a nonparty).
251 words, about 1 min02Contracts
A contract requires offer, acceptance, consideration, capacity, and legality. Determine the governing law first: Article 2 of the UCC governs sales of goods; common law governs services, real estate, and intangibles.
260 words, about 1 min03Corporate and Business Organizations
Candidates must compare sole proprietorships, general partnerships, limited partnerships, LLPs, LLCs, and corporations on formation, liability, taxation, and management. General partners are jointly and severally liable; limited partners are passive investors with limited liability; LLP partners shield themselves from malpractice-type claims; LLC members are shielded absent veil piercing.
251 words, about 1 min04Criminal Law and Procedure
Crimes require actus reus, mens rea, concurrence, and causation. Know specific intent, general intent, malice, and strict liability.
246 words, about 1 min05Estate Planning and Probate
Estate planning requires testamentary intent, capacity, and formalities. A valid will is signed by the testator and attested by witnesses (or is holographic where allowed).
241 words, about 1 min06Real Estate and Property Law
Know the estates: fee simple absolute, life estate, and leasehold. Concurrent ownership includes tenancy in common, joint tenancy with right of survivorship, and tenancy by the entirety.
261 words, about 1 min07Legal Research, Writing, and Ethics
Legal research starts with primary authority - constitutions, statutes, regulations, and cases - and uses secondary sources (encyclopedias, treatises, restatements, law review articles) only as finding aids and persuasive support. Citators such as Shepard's and KeyCite check subsequent history and treatment; a case with negative treatment may no longer be good law.
242 words, about 1 min