It’s an exciting time to be a paralegal and the BCPA ensures that paralegals get the most out of their profession!
The Board of Directors, comprised of working paralegals, represent paralegals working across the Province. Regional directors are active in the Lower Mainland, Interior, Okanagan, and Vancouver Island. BCPA members are paralegals who work at law firms, in-house legal departments, and government ministries. As the BCPA grows, contractors working for lawyers, and students enrolled in paralegal programs as well as educational administrators have joined and more fields are on their way in.
In a letter dated May 25, 2023, addressed to the Law Society of British Columbia, the Ministry of Attorney General has declined the Law Society’s request to bring into force the amendments to the Legal Profession Act (LPA) that would allow for the licensing of paralegals. Attorney General Niki Sharma, KC provides the following behind this decision: “Given that we are close to significant reform, we unfortunately must conclude that at this time it is not possible to allocate the resources that would be required to both maintain momentum on the current project and also bring into force the amendments made five years ago.” For the full text of the letter from the Attorney General Niki Sharma, KC, please refer to: https://lnkd.in/gp-eDMkc
The Ministry remains committed towards the goal of legislating the creation and regulation of licensed paralegals at the earliest opportunity.
𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢? The Ministry anticipates that the reform project currently underway for the single legal regulator will lead to a bill being introduced as early as this coming fall.
The BC Government will continue to work, with the professional consultation of the BCPA, on the legislation for the single legal regulator to create a new class of legal service providers with a carefully thought-out system of regulations and processes put in place to give certainty and improve access to justice for the public.
Given the educational level (high) and abilities (varied) relished by paralegals, this new licensing opportunity will give our profession and our Association the ability to inform the public of our role, both traditional and emerging.
Inquiries regarding licensing of Paralegals can be directed to either the BC Paralegal Association or The Law Society of BC.
As soon as more information is released, the BC Paralegal Association will share this via our social media accounts and website.