Purpose

This specialist program is intended for graduates of the Administrative Assistant Program, as well as experienced administrative assistants wishing to work in the legal field. Graduates may find employment in a variety of positions, as a junior legal administrative assistant or a legal office support employee in the following organizations:  law firms, offices of notaries public, legal departments of large corporations, real estate companies, insurance companies, financial organizations and government departments.

Duration

This program is five months (21 weeks) in length. Students must complete this program within three years.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this program, graduates will be able to:

1. Create, edit, print, store and retrieve legal documents and correspondence

2. Perform legal administrative assistant duties and procedures in the areas of corporate law, conveyancing, litigation, family law, and wills and estates

3. Apply time management principles and set priorities

4. Analyze and solve problems independently and collaboratively

5. Communicate effectively and respect confidentiality

6. Keyboard quickly and accurately, proofread effectively, and transcribe from audio dictation

Admission Requirements

Successful completion of the Vancouver Community College Administrative Assistant Program or equivalent program completed in the English language; OR

Minimum of one year’s administrative assistant experience using MS Word, as demonstrated by the applicant’s resume (with confirmation from an employer, if requested), and the following:

• A tested keyboarding speed of 50 gross words per minute on a 5-minute test with a maximum of 5 errors

• Grade 12 completion or equivalent
• English 12 with a C grade, or equivalent

OR

English Language Proficiency at an English 12 level

Program Requirements

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
OADM 1450	Legal Office Procedures	3
OADM 1452	Corporate Law	3
OADM 1451	Conveyancing	4
OADM 1454	Litigation	4
OADM 1453	Family Law	2
OADM 1455	Wills & Estates	2
OADM 1460	Speed & Accuracy	1
OADM 1456	Practicum	2
Total Credits		21

This guide is intended as a general guideline only. The College reserves the right to make changes as appropriate.

Evaluation of Student Learning

Students are evaluated through theory and practical examinations, assessment of assignments and performance in a practical environment.

Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR)

Prior learning assessment and recognition is not available for this program.

Transcript of Achievement

The evaluation of learning outcomes for each student is prepared by the instructor and reported to the Student Records Department at the completion of semesters.

The transcript typically shows a letter grade for each course. The grade point equivalent for a course is obtained from letter grades as follows:

Grading Standard

Transcript of Achievement

Grade	Percentage	Description	Grade Point Equivalency
A+	96-100		4.33
A	91-95		4.00
A-	86-90		3.67
B+	81-85		3.33
B	76-80		3.00
B-	71-75		2.67
C+	66-70		2.33
C	61-65		2.00
C-	56-60		1.67
D	51-55	Minimum Pass	1.00
F	0-50	Failing Grade	0.00
S	70 or greater	Satisfactory – student has met and mastered a clearly defined body of skills and performances to required standards	N/A
U		Unsatisfactory – student has not met and mastered a clearly defined body of skills and performances to required standards	N/A
I		Incomplete	N/A
IP		Course in Progress	N/A
W		Withdrawal	N/A
Course Standings
R		Audit. No Credits	N/A
EX		Exempt. Credit Granted	N/A
TC		Transfer Credit	N/A

Grade Point Average (GPA)

1. The course grade points shall be calculated as the product of the course credit value and the grade value.

2. The GPA shall be calculated by dividing the total number of achieved course grade points by the total number of assigned course credit values. This cumulative GPA shall be determined and stated on the Transcript at the end of each Program level or semester.

3. Grades shall be assigned to repeated courses in the same manner as courses taken only once. For the purpose of GPA calculation of grades for repeated courses, they will be included in the calculation of the cumulative GPA.