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Florida State College at Jacksonville held its first competition for students of its paralegal studies program May 26. Students were assigned to research a legal issue, specifically a search of electronic data on laptops and phones of travelers without reasonable suspicion or probable cause.
“The attorneys that judged on the final panel were impressed with the level of preparation and professionalism the students showed,” said Nick Martino, professor of paralegal studies at FSCJ.
“Although the panel discussion was only supposed to last 12 minutes, most of them went over 15 minutes as the attorneys were engaged in spirited back and forth (discussions) with the students over their research,” he said.
The competitors drafted a legal memo with their findings and then sat with a panel of attorneys to discuss the findings. They were scored in research, writing and communication.
Mary Alice Groves was the “Overall Winner,” and the runner-up for “Best Memorandum.” Stephanie Mealer was the “Overall Runner-Up.” Christine Lewis won “Best Memorandum.”
Martino plans to expand the competition next year by inviting paralegal programs from other schools in Florida.