National Federation of Paralegal Associations and
the Paralegal Advanced Competency Exam
By Stephanie Hawkes, RP
The National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA) was the first national paralegal association, founded in 1974.
Today, NFPA is comprised of more than 50 member associations and represents more than 11,000 paralegals across the United
States. NFPA is a grass-roots association, dedicated to advancement of the paralegal profession. In 1994, as a way to advance
the profession, NFPA voted to create the Paralegal Advanced Competency Exam (PACE) in order to validate the experience and
jobs skills of paralegals who have been in the profession for a number of years.
The PACE exam covers five domains:
Administration of Client Legal Matters
Development of Client Legal Matters
Factual and Legal Research
Factual and Legal Writing and
Office Administration
The criteria to sit for the PACE exam includes both work experience and education. These requirements are: an associate’s
degree in paralegal studies from an accredited school and six years substantive paralegal experience; or a bachelor’s degree
and three years of substantive paralegal experience; or a bachelor’s degree and completion of a paralegal program at an
accredited school and two years substantive paralegal experience or four years substantive paralegal experience on or before
December 31, 2000.
The exam is administrated by computer, over a four-hour period at selected Sylvan Technology Centers. The RP candidate
can select the location and date of testing, subject to the limitations of the Sylvan Center. The application fee for the
exam is $25 for NFPA members and $75 for non-members. The exam fee is $225 for NFPA members and $250 for non-members.
Once a paralegal passes the PACE exam, they may use the designation “PACE—Registered Paralegal” or “RP.” In order to
maintain this credential, the RP is required to complete 12 hours of continuing legal education every two years, with at
least one hour in legal ethics.
More information about the PACE exam and NFPA can be found on the NFPA website, www.paralegals.org.
Stephanie Hawkes, RP, is Manager of Consumer Privacy and Information Security for Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation
in Irving, Texas. She is a registered paralegal by the National Federation of Paralegal Associations.
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