Pathways Skills

This is a legal writing course for those studying for the CP Exam and anyone interested in legal writing. In a step-by-step process, the course is a comprehensive review of the writing process for facts, issues, analyses, and conclusions. The course has many samples of the parts of a memorandum, which illuminate the daily work of paralegals. Parts of facts, issues, analyses, and conclusions are found in affidavits, declarations, motions, judgments, orders, witness statements, deposition questions, letters, email messages, briefs, summaries, internal and external memoranda, and even trial notebooks. For example, a good understanding of the facts, issues, and analyses for a case makes for a strong and helpful trial notebook. The attorney's proof (facts) on a point (an issue) and the witnesses who will testify or provide documents (the proof) may be placed in the trial notebook or may be used to prepare an affidavit or declaration of a witness in support of a motion. Legal writing skills are transferable to all areas of law from litigation to contracts.

You start your journey to successfully pass the NALA CP Skills Exam! All parts and chapters are open to you as soon as you enroll, including a sample legal memorandum. We want to lessen anxiety with this important exam for certification so we explain the parts in detail, explain how the parts come together, and then show you how the parts look in a sample.

Yes, we provide feedback on memos written for the three cases we suggest in the AchieveVia Skills course. Just submit your memo to us and we will provide feedback and a sample legal memo on that case. The sample memo will be in addition to the sample memo all enrollees see in the AchieveVia Skills course.

You will be asked to write a legal memorandum for the Skills Exam. That is the only part of the Skills Exam, which does not include any multiple-choice questions. The memorandum is worth 30 points and we show you the points breakdown in this AchieveVia course. The exam tests English language skills such as grammar, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and clarity of expression. You should know the format for a legal memorandum. And you must write about the four main parts: facts, issue, analysis, and conclusion. You may use the points breakdown to concentrate your studies to earn the most points possible.

Although there are no multiple-choice questions on the NALA CP Skills Exam, we find them helpful as a review of vocabulary you might encounter on the Skills Exam. It is also always good to brush up on English language skills and to know English rules from a style manual. We introduce you to a suggested style manual in this course.

AchieveVia CP Exam Review Skills course has detailed information on the parts of a legal memorandum. Study that information and: 1). complete the multiple-choice questions provided by AchieveVia, 2). memorize the format for a legal memorandum, 3). write a statement of facts, 4). write an issue, 5). write an analysis; practice using the Application Formula, and 6). write a conclusion. Repeat the writing parts (3 to 6) to become more proficient as you go. We suggest that you use three well-known cases for your writing practice. Those three cases are listed with their citations in our course.

AchieveVia uses “A Pocket Style Manual, Eighth Edition” by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers. This manual has rules for grammar, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and clarity of expression. It is widely used for college writing courses and academic/research writing. It is pocket-sized, opens easily with a spiral binding, is faster and more reliable than an internet search, has understandable rules, and has many samples for each rule.

We have a sample legal memorandum in the course. It shows the commonly-used format for writing legal memoranda. The sample demonstrates the four main parts: facts, issue, analysis, and conclusion. It is an important sample for you to see along your journey to successfully pass the NALA CP Exam!