Just One More Reason to Get Certified
By Marsha Watson-Smitherman, PP, PLS

In recent weeks, a friend of mine contacted me, wanting information about how to study for the PLS.  It seems a large local firm has been discussing making the ALS a requirement for entry level new hires and making the PLS a requirement for top-tier staff promotions.

Certainly, every large firm is concerned with ensuring the quality of the people they hire and retain.  My own firm requires five years of experience for all legal secretary positions, which, till now, is the most stringent requirement I’ve seen.  I have certainly heard of firms that pay more for PLS certified secretaries and firms that require paralegal certification, even though that is not currently a requirement in Kansas or Missouri.

My friend, who joined NALS because her firm pays for membership, and membership reduces the cost of the exam, is planning to take the exam in March.  She is concerned about a policy that requires even secretaries with 30 years of experience to take the exam, and she is concerned about the cost of the exam and study materials.  The firm has agreed to reimburse certain costs after the exam is passed, but first, she says, she has to pass.

I also spoke with a friend who is active in NALS, an employee with the firm in question, and sitting on the committee studying this proposal.  As consideration continues, the committee is processing the information that the exam is, in fact, very hard, and that some well prepared people don’t pass the first time.  This person was unwilling to comment on committee progress—the policy is not finalized, and the work of the committee is confidential.

I am a long-time advocate of the NALS certification programs—ALS, PLS, and the PP—and an enthusiastic supporter of education for people who work in our industry, but I’m uncomfortable with a system that requires certification rather than simply rewarding it.  But although this initiative is confined to one firm at present, if the policy is adopted, it is likely to migrate to other firms in our area.  And as the job market tightens, all firms will be looking at yet more ways to assure the quality of their new hires and their existing staff.

I also worked at Wal-Mart part-time for a number of years.  The most important thing I learned there is that payroll is a company’s largest expense and the easiest to control.  You can’t reduce your electricity by 30 percent.  You can reduce your staff that much—although it is painful to do it.  It’s important to do everything we can to assure that we are identified with the most knowledgeable and competent part of our office staff, because law firms are as susceptible as anyone else to belt-tightening in difficult times.

The more we know about our profession the better off we are.  When I first passed the PLS, I had never done any real estate work, never seen a trust, and never been involved in the preparation of corporate forms.  Since then, I have worked in offices that used those skills heavily.  Certification may not prepare you for every possible situation, but it improves your professional vocabulary and teaches you what you need to know to complete new tasks. 

With the importance of certification once again in front of us, please allow me to announce some very good news.  The PP Seminar developed by the NALS Education Committee has been updated for the September 2008 exam.  The program covers each of the four parts of the exam and includes 235 new study questions written in mock exam format, for those of you who want to brush up your test-taking skills.  There are over 200 pages of lesson plans and nearly 500 PowerPoint slides that would be great for a special study group session or cram weekend.  Put together a study group of even five people or consider purchasing it for the LSA, and this program quickly becomes very affordable.  Check the NALS website Store or call the NALS Resource Center for more information, and GET CERTIFIED!