Correspondence Paralegal Certificate Program for the incarcerated
Correspondence Paralegal Certificate Program for individuals who are incarcerated

Sponsor

Once you complete and submit the form, an information packet about our correspondence
 paralegal certificate program will be mailed to your loved one’s facility address

Tuition

Our payment plans cover the entire program including soft-covered books, study guides, exam evaluation services, and a certificate program completion.

How It Works

This resource is designed for sponsors like you! Our guide will explain how the program works once a student is enrolled in one of our correspondence programs.

Enroll Now

Receive a quality education at a very reasonable rate. You can enroll your loved one for $59 down. We offer 2 monthly payment plan options with 0% interest.

Sponsor

Once you complete and submit the form, an information packet about our correspondence paralegal certificate program will be mailed to your loved one’s facility address.

Tuition

Our payment plans cover the entire program including soft-covered books, study guides, exam evaluation services, and a certificate program completion.

How It Works

This resource is designed for sponsors like you! Our guide will explain how the program works once a student is enrolled in one of our correspondence programs.

Enroll Now

Receive a quality education at a very reasonable rate. You can enroll your loved one for $59 down. We offer 2 monthly payment plan options with 0% interest.

Correspondence Paralegal Certificate Program for individuals who are incarcerated student studying

WHAT YOU WILL DO

Paralegals, also known as Legal Assistants, work behind the scenes to ensure lawyers have everything they need to perform their jobs smoothly. Paralegals work for small and large law firms, corporations, banks, and government agencies. Depending on the position, an employer will expect a paralegal to: 

  • Investigate and gather the facts of a case 
  • Conduct research on relevant laws, regulations, and legal articles 
  • Organize and maintain documents in paper or electronic filing systems 
  • Gather and arrange evidence and other legal documents for attorney review and case preparation 
  • Write or summarize reports to help lawyers prepare for trials
  • Draft correspondence and legal documents, such as contracts and mortgages 
  • Get affidavits and other formal statements that may be used as evidence in court 
  • Help lawyers during trials by handling exhibits, taking notes, or reviewing trial transcripts 
  • File exhibits, briefs, appeals and other legal documents with the court or opposing counsel 
  • Call clients, witnesses, lawyers, and outside vendors to schedule interviews, meetings, and depositions

Like lawyers, paralegals can specialize in multiple legal areas, including corporate law, personal injury, bankruptcy, immigration, real estate and family law.

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

The Legal Assistant/Paralegal certificate program provides the foundational knowledge and skills needed in general law. Blackstone Career Institute prepares students for employment in a law firm, bank, court, government agency, or one of dozens of organizations that depend on legal assistants/paralegals today.

  • Define law and identify basic legal terms
  • Explain legal concepts related to contracts
  • Identify aspects of torts
  • Identify legal cause, negligence, and deceit
  • Demonstrate an understanding of civil and criminal defamation
  • Give the legal definition of property and describe damages
  • Distinguish a crime from a tort and list the three classes of crime
  • Describe larceny and identify the three degrees of larceny
  • Identify legal terms related to real property
  • Identify actions to recover damages in civil suits
  • Identify legal terms related to civil actions
  • Identify legal terms related to criminal procedure
  • Explain the process of criminal procedure
  • Identify and explain legal concepts related to wills
  • Identify and explain legal concepts related to trusts and trustees
  • Explain how partnerships and corporations are formed
  • Discuss the elements of constitutional law
  • Describe how legal research should be conducted
  • Identify effective job-search techniques for paralegals
  • Describe common ethics related to the paralegal profession
BCI's Advanced Correspondence Programs For Incarcerated that broaden legal knowledge, and gain skills to increase employment upon release.

CHANGING LIVES THROUGH EDUCATION

What our students say

Blackstone is by far the greatest choice I've ever made

“Blackstone is by far the greatest choice I’ve ever made it turned my life around and provided me with awesome opportunities for a future in the law industry. I have been told that upon release and graduation, I have a job as a paralegal at an established law firm. Thanks, BCI!”

Vincent William Gonzalez, Graduate

I truly appreciate the opportunity Blackstone has afforded me

“I truly appreciate the opportunity Blackstone has afford me in providing quality education while incarcerated. I now have earned my diploma and am ecstatic about what my future holds for me. Thank you, Blackstone!”

Tiara Arnold, Graduate

Blackstone has allowed me to break barriers

“Blackstone has allowed me to break barriers as a convicted felon, I was used to being on one side of the courtroom. But now I will be part of a legal team and I’m forever grateful to Blackstone for this opportunity”

Corey Woodland, Graduate

BOOKS INCLUDED

Blackstone Paralegal Studies - 14 Volume Set

Blackstone’s Modern American Law Series – 14 Volume Set

Open the Book

Merriam Websters Dictionary of Law

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law

Open the Book

Writing to Win the legal writer by Steven D Stark

Writing to Win: A Legal Writer – By Steven D. Stark

USING TIME TO YOUR ADVANTAGE

Jail to jobs full color logo
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At any given time, more than 1,200 incarcerated students are participating in the Institute’s correspondence Legal Assistant/Paralegal certificate program for the incarcerated. The old-fashioned paper-based course – no Internet is required – has been delivered to more than 1,800 institutions since the program began in the late 1970s.

The course can change their lives, as it did for Michael Harris, who was incarcerated in Arizona and is now a legal administrator/paralegal at Saldivar & Associates, PLLC in Phoenix. And he’s just one example.

Higher education provides formerly incarcerated people with the ability to find good job opportunities and get their lives back on track. Only 4% of formerly incarcerated folks have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher, while 25% of the general public has reached this level of education.

In this guide, we review how to get into college, the best degrees for people with prior convictions, and everything else that formerly incarcerated folks should know about higher education.

Jail to jobs full color logo

At any given time, more than 1,200 incarcerated students are participating in the Institute’s correspondence Legal Assistant/Paralegal certificate program for the incarcerated. The old-fashioned paper-based course – no Internet is required – has been delivered to more than 1,800 institutions since the program began in the late 1970s.

The course can change their lives, as it did for Michael Harris, who was incarcerated in Arizona and is now a legal administrator/paralegal at Saldivar & Associates, PLLC in Phoenix. And he’s just one example.

Intelligent Logo Full Color

Higher education provides formerly incarcerated people with the ability to find good job opportunities and get their lives back on track. Only 4% of formerly incarcerated folks have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher, while 25% of the general public has reached this level of education.

In this guide, we review how to get into college, the best degrees for people with prior convictions, and everything else that formerly incarcerated folks should know about higher education.

FAQs

You can enroll the student one of three ways:
1) Enroll online, anytime. Simply click here
2) Call our student center at 800.826.9228 to speak with a student representative
3) Request an enrollment agreement be mailed to the student. Simply click here to request information.

Our correspondence Legal Assistant/Paralegal certificate program offers 3 payments plan options:

Plan A – Pay in Full – $885
Plan B – $59 Monthly Payments – $59 down & 14 Monthly Payments of $59, total $885
Plan C – $30 Monthly Payments – $59 down, 27 Monthly Payments of $30, with a final payment of $16, total $885

There are 14 volumes that are mailed to the student. The payment option you choose determines the frequency of shipments. Here are more details:

Plan A – Pay in Full – Three volumes are shipped to the student. Once the student completes the coursework in the first three volumes, the next set of 3 is shipped.
Plan B – $59 Monthly Payments – One volume is shipped per each monthly payment received.
Plan C – $30 Monthly Payments – One volume is shipped every two months per payment received.

View All Tuition Details Here

According to the Illinois Department of Corrections: after individuals successfully complete the Blackstone Legal Assistant/Paralegal certificate program and provide successful completion of the program to the facility administration, an award may be recommended for 180 days of earned program sentence credit.

To assess each student’s knowledge and ensure all students have met the level of understanding of the objectives presented in this program, the successful completion of a proctored final examination is required to receive a Legal Assistant/Paralegal certificate from Blackstone Career Institute. Once a student completes all paralegal coursework, meets all financial obligations, and all required documentation is in the student’s academic record, the student is then eligible to take a proctored final examination.

In order to secure a proctor for the final examination, students must communicate with the Volunteer Coordinator at their facility. The student should then work with the Volunteer Coordinator to attain a proctor for the final examination. It should be noted that any employee of the facility is not eligible to be the proctor for the student.

Students may qualify for earned time. We recommend you consult with the Education Director at your facility for eligibility and the policies that apply in each state.

For additional information, you can check with the National Conference of State Legislatures

The Blackstone Legal Assistant/Paralegal certificate program, rich in content, is a program that on average takes students 12-14 months to complete. While we have had some students finish the entire course in a shorter period of time, this is not the norm and it has been proven that educational retention suffers.  Blackstone’s policy states that a student may not complete the Legal Assistant/Paralegal certificate program in less than four (4) months. The period begins on the date of the student’s enrollment.

We hear from many of our incarcerated graduates that they obtained paralegal positions once released. In fact, many have found positions with attorneys they met while incarcerated or during their court proceedings.