Membership Options

Active Membership is open to any individual who meets the Active Membership Qualifications.  Active Members have voting privileges and may serve as officers, directors or committee chairs.

Active Membership Dues: $75 per year

Associate Membership is open to any individual who would otherwise qualify for Active Membership, but has not yet received the minimum in-house training as a paralegal. Associate Members do not have voting privileges and may not serve as officers.

Associate Membership Dues: $75 per year

Student Membership is available to any individual who is a student enrolled in a paralegal program in good standing in any college, junior college, or other school. Upon completion of the paralegal program, student members may maintain their student membership status for one year before transferring to active membership.

Student members do not have voting privileges and cannot serve as officers of the association.

Student Membership Dues: $30 per year

Sustaining Membership is available to law firms, corporations, schools or individuals who support the paralegal profession, and support the goals, activities and programs of the Smoky Mountain Paralegal Association.

Sustaining Members do not have voting privileges and may not serve as officers of the association.

Sustaining Membership Dues: $100 per year

1. 1. Any individual who has successfully completed the Certified Legal Assistant (CLS) examination of NALA (copy of CLA certificate must be attached to application); or
   2. Any individual who has graduated from an ABA approved program of study for paralegals (copy of diploma must be attached to application); or
   3. Any individual who has graduated from a course of study for paralegals, which is institutionally accredited but not ABA approved, and which requires no less than the equivalent of 60 semester hours of classroom study (copy of diploma must be attached to application); or
   4. Any individual who has graduated from a course of study for paralegal other than those set forth in (2) and (3) above, plus not less than six months of in-house training as a paralegal, whose attorney-employer attests that such a person is qualified and employed as a paralegal (copy of diploma must be attached to application); or
   5. Any individual who  has received a baccalaureate degree in any field, plus not less than six months in-house training as a paralegal, whose attorney-employer attests that such person is quailified and employed as a paralegal (copy of diploma must be attached to application); or
   6. Any individual who has a minimum of two years of in-house training as a paralegal, and a minimum o five years of law-related experience under supervision of an attorney, whose attorney-employer attests that such a person is qualified and employed as a paralegal as outlined in the definition of a paralegal.