Paralegals -- Issues in Accreditation (From Improving Access to Justice: The Future of Paralegal Professionals -- Conference Proceedings, 1990, Canberra, Australia, P 125-130, 1991, Julia Vernon and Francis Regan, eds. -- See NCJ-129734)

• NCJ Number: 129751
• Author(s): J Wallace
• Date Published: 1991
• Length: 6 pages
• Sale Source: Australian Institute of Criminology
• Publication Type: Conference Material
• Language: English
• Country: Australia

Annotation

The accreditation and regulation of various service providers in Australia, including paralegal professionals, are examined.

Abstract

Both accreditation and regulation systems must define the status, qualifications, and area of work of service providers. Either system can involve government recognition and legislation or members organizing on behalf of themselves. Occupations have been regulated by the Australian government since the early history of the country, but an explosion of regulatory systems has occurred in the last 50 years. In addition to increased occupational differentiation, there has been increased credentialism and bureaucratic control of many occupations. Trends in the regulation of service providers concern centralized administration, deregulation, regulation in the public interest, and accreditation separate from professional skills. Once professions establish themselves, they attract paraprofessionals at their fringes. In the legal field, paralegals provide significant services in several areas. The answer to accreditation in the legal arena is to deregulate lawyers rather than to create another professional category. Given the trends in paralegal work, the deregulation most needed is in advocacy services. 2 references