Setting the Standard for Paralegal Excellence in Central Florida since 1983
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Florida Registered Paralegal, FRP and the above logo are trademarks and property of The Florida Bar.
IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING GRANDFATHERING
IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING GRANDFATHERING – As
of March 1, 2011, you may no longer use grandfathering in order to
register as an Florida Registered Paralegal. Therefore, you may no
longer use experience alone as a basis for eligibility for registration.
If you wish to register you must meet the education/work experience or
certification requirement for eligibility. If you apply under the
grandfathering provision after March 1, 2011, your application will be
rejected. Please note the application fee is not refundable.
The grandfathering
provision of the eligibility requirement is no longer available as a means to register as a Florida Registered Paralegal.
After March 1, 2011, a paralegal who
might otherwise qualify for registration under this provision will no
longer be able to become a Florida Registered Paralegal by virtue of their
experience alone.
After March
1, 2011, a paralegal MUST meet either the education/work experience OR
certification requirement for eligibility.
See the FLORIDA BAR WEBSITE for
more details and information on the Rule 20 Eligibility requirements.
The Florida Registered Paralegal Programis not a certifying program, but a voluntary registration program administered by the Florida Bar. Click here for information about becoming a CERTIFIED PARALEGAL or a FLORIDA CERTIFIED PARALEGAL.
Application - Arevised application packetcan be obtained from the Florida Bar website. For more details, go to the Florida Bar website www.floridabar.org and look under the Professional Practice menu tab on the left for Florida Registered Paralegal Program. The registration fee is $150.00.
Online FRP Profile - Once your Florida Registered Paralegal application has been approved, you can manage your contact information with the Florida Bar online by logging in to the MEMBER LOG IN on the home page of the Florida Bar website. Click here for instructions on how to OBTAIN A PASSWORD.
Submit CLE hours Online - You are now able to post continuing education credits online! Get INSTRUCTIONS on how to post your credits or see below for step by step instructions for posting CFPA Seminars. After your credits have
been posted, you can review your continuing education history.
Renewal - Annual renewal statements will be mailed to your record address around July before the renewal year. Annual renewal fee is $150.00 and must be paid by August 15. If you do not pay by August 15 before the renewal year, you will be assessed a $40.00 late fee bringing your total renewal to $190.00. If you do not pay the $190.00 by October 1, before the renewal year, your FRP registration will be revoked. You will be able to pay by check or online with a credit card. You need a password to pay online.
SUBMIT CLE HOURS ONLINE
You are now able to post continuing education credits online! Go to www.floridabar.org/frp
for instructions on how to post your credits. After your credits have
been posted, you can review your continuing education history.
TO SUBMIT CFPA SEMINAR HOURS WITH THE FLORIDA BAR:
Log
in to the Florida Bar website. Your USER NAME is your FRP
number. Enter your password and select the option for NALA-approved
credit. If you have not already created an online profile with the Florida
Bar, click the link above for instructions on how to obtain a password.
Enter the following information:
COURSE TITLE - Name of the
Seminar on the Flyer/Website/Certificate of Attendance
HOURS - Unless otherwise stated on the Flyer or the Website, all CFPA
Seminars are approved for GENERAL hours. If it has been approved for
ETHICS or PROFESSIONALISM credit, the Certificate of Attendance will indicate
the amount for this credit. Sometimes this information is not available
at the time the Flyer is created and the Website is updated often and seminar
information is deleted after the date of the Seminar. Please be sure to
keep your Certificate of Attendance that is provided at the end of every CFPA
Seminar. If you have any questions about your CFPA Seminar accreditation,
contact the CLECHAIR. General CE Credit - This information can be obtained from the
Certificate of Attendance. YOU MUST ENTER A NUMBER HERE. Even
ethics and professionalism should be entered here. This is the total
number of hours approved for the Seminar you're submitting. For example,
if you took a Seminar that offered 3 hours, and 1 hour was for Ethics or
Professionalism, enter 3. Ethics
CE Credit - Entire the number here only indicated
on the Certificate of Attendance for ETHICS credit. For example, if you
took a Seminar that offered 3 hours, but only 1 hour was for Ethics, enter 1. Professionalism CE Credit - Entire the
number here only indicated on the Flyer or Website for PROFESSIONALISM
credit. For example, if you took a Seminar that offered 3 hours, but only
1 hour was for Professionalism, enter 1.
Seminars are only recognized in half hours or full hours. Read the
Certificate of Attendance for the exact time approved.
DATE COMPLETED - Enter the
date of the Seminar from the Certificate of Attendance.
Click Continue to CONFIRM your CLE hours entry. Be sure
that the information you entered is correct before clicking SUBMIT.
You can go back to the previous page to make corrections only BEFORE you click
SUBMIT. If you click submit and realize an error, you must call the
Florida Bar to correct it.
CONFIRMATION OF CLE HOURS SUBMITTED
- It is strongly recommended that you print this page and keep it with your
Flyer and Certificate of Attendance for your records.
History of the Legislative Process - As
of 04/16/2007: The Florida Supreme Court heard Oral
Argument regarding the Florida Registered Paralegal. To review the petition and appendices, you will need to leave this site & go to the Florida Supreme
Court's website.
After obtaining the minimum standard for education and experience,
Florida Registered Paralegals are given a certificate and registration
card showing their status as a Florida Registered Paralegal through the
Florida Bar Association. A Florida Registered Paralegal is not a
member of The Florida Bar and may not give legal advice or practice law.
As of September 7, 2010, there are 4007 Florida Registered Paralegals!
Frequently Asked Questions About Florida Registered Paralegals
This page originated from the Florida Bar Association's website. For more information about Florida Registered Paralegals, click the Florida Bar logo above to be redirected to the official Florida Bar website.
Q: Do I have to register in order to work as a paralegal in Florida? A: No, registration is voluntary. You may continue to work as a paralegal without registering.
Q: What is the registration deadline? A: Unless you are using the grandfathering provision, there is no deadline.
Q: I no longer see grandfathering on the application. May I still apply using experience alone? A:
No. As of March 1, 2011, you may no longer use grandfathering in
order to register as an Florida Registered Paralegal. Therefore, you may
no longer use experience alone as a basis for eligibility for
registration. If you wish to register you must meet the education/work
experience or certification requirement for eligibility. If you apply
under the grandfathering provision after March 1, 2011, your application
will be rejected. Please note the application fee is not refundable.
Q: But I still see the grandfathering provision in the rule. Why? A:
The rule was adopted by the Supreme Court of Florida. There is a
procedure for making changes to the rule. Unfortunately, that procedure
takes some time. Because of this, the language is still in the rule.
However, the rule also says that any attestation under the
grandfathering provision must be received by The Florida Bar not later
than 3 years after the effective date of the chapter. The chapter
became effective on March 1, 2008. Consequently, on March 1, 2011, you
could no longer use grandfathering for eligibility. The rule will be
changed as soon as possible.
Q: How do I find out if my paralegal degree is from an approved paralegal program? A: An approved paralegal program is a program approved by the American Bar Association ("ABA") or a program that is in substantial compliance with the ABA guidelines and accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency approved by the United States Department of Education. You may contact your school to determine whether they meet the requirement or check the ABA website, www.abanet.org, the U.S. Department of Education website, ope.ed.gov/accreditation (note -- there is no www before the address), or the American Association for Paralegal Education.
Q: How do I find out if my degree is from an accredited institution? A: The degree has to be from an institution accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency approved by the United States Department of Education or the Florida Department of Education. You may contact your school to determine whether they meet the requirement or check the U.S. Department of Education website, ope.ed.gov/accreditation (note -- there is no www before the address) or the Florida Department of Education website, www.fldoe.org.
Q: I heard that the $150 application fee was waived for the first year. Is this true? A: No. A $150 application fee must be submitted with the application in order for it to be processed. An application submitted without the fee will be returned.
Q: I have worked for my current employing attorney for 2 years but he has knowledge about my prior paralegal experience. Can my current employing attorney fill out the attorney attestation? A: Your current employing attorney can only attest to the 2 years you've been working for him/her. You will need your former employer(s) to attest to your paralegal work experience while working for them.
Q: I contacted my university/community college about getting verification of my degree. I was told that I needed to contact the National Student Clearing House to obtain that verification. Will this verification from the National Student Clearing House be sufficient evidence of my degree? A: Yes.
Q: I am trying to qualify based on education and work experience. Can I use my paralegal work experience in another state when calculating my work experience? A: Only paralegal work experience for a member of The Florida Bar counts for purposes of work experience. If you were working for a member of The Florida Bar in the other state, you can count that paralegal work experience. If you were not working for a member of The Florida Bar, you cannot count that paralegal work experience.
Q: I have been working as a paralegal in Florida for the last 2 years. Before moving to Florida I worked as a paralegal for an out-of-state licensed attorney for 10 years. Can I be grandfathered into the Florida Registered Paralegal Program? A: No, only paralegal work for a member of The Florida Bar counts as paralegal work experience. You would have to qualify by certification or by education and work experience after you worked for a Florida attorney for the requisite amount of time.
Q: The application asks for the number of hours I have performed paralegal work. Is this billable hours only? A: No. Include the total number of hours you have worked in the past year performing paralegal work whether billable or not.
Q: I have taken some continuing education courses. Can I submit those towards the 30 hour requirement? A: Only courses taken after your registration date may be used towards the 30 hour continuing education requirement.
Q: Once I am registered, what designation may I use? A: The rule provides that "[a] Florida Registered Paralegal shall disclose his or her status as a Florida Registered Paralegal at the outset of any professional relationship with a client, attorneys, a court or administrative agency or personnel thereof, and members of the general public." You may either say Florida Registered Paralegal or FRP. However, if you state FRP, you must also state paralegal. For example: J. Doe, FRP Paralegal Law Office
Q: I am also certified by another organization. When listing my credentials, which do I list first? Do I need to list all of my credentials? A: You should check with the other organization. The Florida Bar rule does not control the order. However, you must state that you are a Florida Registered Paralegal. (see question above as to disclosure requirement)
Q: I have worked for several attorneys. How many attestation forms do I need? A: You need 1 form for each attorney that you have worked for during the years you are using for the qualifying criteria.
Q: I am using education and work experience as my qualifying criteria. Do you need a certified copy of my degree? A: No.
Q: I am an independent paralegal. I
provide services to attorneys and to the public. May I register as a
Florida Registered Paralegal? A: No, you may not register as a Florida Registered Paralegal. In addition, you may not use the title paralegal in providing services directly to the public. Doing so constitutes the unlicensed practice of law.
Q: I have a degree from a foreign country. Can I use that degree to meet the eligibility requirements? A:
No. Under the rule your degree must come from a United States
institution that meets the requirements of the rule. The degree must be
an associates, bachelors or juris doctorate degree. Q: One of the attorneys I worked
for is deceased. Without an attestation from the years that I worked
for that attorney, I do not meet the eligibility requirements. What can I
do? A:
First, we need the name of the deceased attorney. If there was an
inventory attorney appointed, you can submit an attestation from the
inventory attorney. The inventory attorney would have access to the
deceased attorney's files and would be able to determine whether you
primarily provided paralegal services. If there is no inventory
attorney, you can provide an attestation from someone else in the firm
with knowledge of your employment. If the attorney was a sole
practitioner, contact FRP counsel at frp@flabar.org.
Q: What is the annual renewal fee and when is it due? A:
The annual renewal fee is $150.00. Generally, it is due July 1 of each
year and considered late after August 15. If late, a $40.00 late fee is
added. If the renewal fee + late fee is not paid by October 1, your FRP
status will be revoked. If any of these dates fall on a Saturday or
Sunday, the date is extended to the following Monday. The annual
renewal statements are mailed at the end of May or beginning of June. If
you are registered as an FRP prior to the date the renewals are mailed,
you will be mailed a renewal statement. For example, if you are
registered May 1, you will be mailed a renewal statement and must pay
the renewal fee to keep your FRP status. Your renewal fee is different
from your application fee. Even if you paid your application fee close
to the date your renewal fee is due, you will need to pay the renewal
fee to keep your FRP status.
