Paralegal pointers

A very happy new year from the Scottish Paralegal Association. 2017 was another eventful year for SPA with Sandra Reid appointed as President and Alison Smith Vice President. The committee would like to thank Jacqueline Burns and Nicola Heggie for their work for the Association over the last two years.

Our annual conference in April was another huge success. More than 130 delegates attended, and we had quality speakers presenting on many topics, and also fantastic sponsors. Preparations are well underway for this year’s conference on 19 April, which will again be held in Grand Central Hotel, Glasgow. We have a great lineup of speakers covering a variety of domains, including conveyancing, commercial property, private client, licensing, civil and debt recovery and personal injury – please save the date.

At last year’s conference Genevieve Litauer of Glasgow City Council was awarded SPA Paralegal of the Year 2017. Application forms for this year’s award will be available shortly, so don’t be shy, nominate yourself or a fellow paralegal that you think is worthy of this accolade. 

Last year also saw the Law Society of Scotland launch the Accredited Paralegal scheme, and there are now more than 400 accredited paralegals in Scotland.

Following the success of our networking events in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow, including our Christmas Prosecco and Mince Pie evenings, we are continuing with these this year and look forward to meeting many of you there. Invites will be emailed and the events will be posted on our website and social media.

The committee would like to thank all members for their continued support over 2017 and look forward to seeing you at events during 2018.

Best wishes for 2018 from all of the committee.