Paralegal & Legal Studies Transfer

Transferring In

This policy is intended to govern the transfer of legal specialty courses taken at other colleges to earn credit for legal specialty courses required to earn an Associate Degree or Paralegal Certificate from Bristol Community College.

Bristol Academic, Career and Transfer Office

• The Admissions Office at Bristol must receive an official transcript from the college where the credits have been earned.
• The Admissions Office at Bristol then determines whether the college is an accredited institution and whether the student earned a "C" or better in the legal specialty course. If so, the Admissions Office forwards a copy of the transcript to the Paralegal Program Coordinator for further review.

Paralegal Program Office

• The Paralegal Program Coordinator requests that the student provide the Program with a copy of the course description from the college catalog as well as the syllabus for any legal specialty course desiring transfer credit.
• Upon receipt of the requested material, the Paralegal Coordinator reviews the course description and the syllabus to ensure that the course is similar to that offered at Bristol and meets the American Bar Association's requirements for a legal specialty course.
• To be considered a legal specialty course by the ABA, the course must:
  1. Cover a specific area of law, procedure, or the legal process.
  2. Be developed for legal assistants.
  3. Emphasize legal assistant skills, forms, documents, procedures, and legal principles and theories.
  4. Be pertinent to the legal assistant’s performance on the job.

Restrictions

• Advanced Legal Research & Writing (PLS 24 must be taken at Bristol Community College.
• Transfer credit will not be accepted for the Paralegal Internship course (PLS 243).
• Transfer credit will not be given for more than two legal specialty courses to satisfy the paralegal major requirements.
• No credit will be given for legal specialty courses taken more than six years prior to the student's completion of the program requirements.
• Credits will only be given for paralegal internships taken through Bristol Community College.
  
  

Legal specialty courses will be reviewed by the Coordinator of the Paralegal & Legal Studies Program who will compare the content of the course to make sure that it meets ABA standards. Transfer credit will be given for no more than two legal specialty courses (6 credits) to satisfy requirements for an Associate Degree or a Certificate.