Course:      PLGL 201—CRN 72592

Instructor: Traci Holler

Required Text: Fundamentals of Law Office Management: Systems, Procedures, and  Ethics Fifth Edition by: Pamela Nollkamper

Contact information

• Office number: 805.546-3100
• Email: traci_holler@cuesta.edu
• Face to Face Office Hours: TBA
• Virtual Office Hour: Monday 4-5 pm
• Skype name: Traci Holler

Instructor Contact Expectations

• E-mail: Sending me an e-mail is the fastest and best  way to contact  me.  I check e-mails in the morning and again in the evening.  I usually do not check e-mails after 6:30 p.m.
• Response Time: Generally, I will respond within 24 hours.
• Breaks: Holidays, Spring break and Summer break, I only check my e-mail periodically.

Course Description

This course is designed to acquaint the student with an understanding of the fundamental principles of law office management/procedures that he or she is likely to encounter in the legal environment. It is designed to familiarize the legal assistant with the practical inner workings of a law office including understanding law office procedures. Emphasis will be placed on educating the student on common ethical and malpractice problems for attorneys and legal assistants and how to avoid or handle the concerns/problems. By the end of this course a student should know how to: (1) prepare a trust account ledger and define the types of funds held in a trust account (2) AVOID unauthorized practice of the law, (3) calendar deadlines/dates and define the types of calendar systems, (4) define legal team members and legal structures, (5) record/track billable and non-billable time, (6) avoid unethical conduct,(7) ) know common legal terminology used in the legal field, (8) compare and contrast various types of attorney fees and fee agreements (9) communicate effectively with staff, attorneys, and clients, (10) draft resumes, (11) know the basics of online legal research.

Student Learning Outcomes
1. Describe ethical standards for paralegals and attorneys and types of disiplanary actions.

2. Explain the importance of calendar and docket control.
   3. Discuss the basic skills and qualities required for all members of a well-qualified law office support staff.

Disability Student Programs and Services

If you have a physical, mental, or learning disability that requires any special accommodation, please contact Disabled Student Programs and Services as soon as possible to ensure that you receive the accommodations in a timely manner.  I will be happy to discuss and work with you on your need for accommodations.  You can also contact student services. http://www.cuesta.edu/student/studentservices/dsps/index.html 


College Support Services

• Tutorial services are provided to students and can be found at the following link: Tutorial Services

• For a list and reference to library services, including learning research and assistance, please follow the link: Library and Learning Resources
• Other campus services Veteran’s services

Help and Technical Support

• LMS Site. For issues related to accessing Cuesta's LMS Site or other technical issues, students may email: support@my.cuesta.edu
• Technical Issues: If the Cuesta server goes down or the power is out, the campus LMS will also be down and you will not be able to access your online course.  When this happens, you should email your instructor from your student email (not from within the LMS) for more information or instructions.
• For all other issues related to the course or course content, please email me.

Course and College Policies

• Regular Effective Contact policy: Regular and Effective Instructor Contact will be met through weekly instructor initiated threaded discussion forums; weekly announcements to students; timely and effective feedback on student assignments; email, phone or messaging to individuals; Facetime, and virtual office hours.
• Authentication policy: Authenticating student identity will be conducted by using the Learning Management System (LMS), Canvas. Canvas requires each student to log into the program using a secure login and password to access. 
• Follow this link for General Campus Policies  (including: Withdrawal, Repeatability, Student Code of Conduct)
• Board Policy Student Conduct Code and Technology Agreement
• College Plagiarism and Academic Honesty Policy

Netiquette and Online Course Participation

• Use respectful and appropriate language in your forum discussions. 
• Please do not use texting language, lol. 
• Emoticons are acceptable ways to show emotion.
• Avoid CAPS as they come across like YOU'RE SCREAMING.
• You are expected to read all forum posts.
• You are need to write a post to each Discussion Board and respond to the appropriate number of posts for each forum, which is at least two.
• All messages are public, so be careful and courteous when you post.
• Make your posts thorough and your replies as well. 
• Complete sentences and thoughts are mandatory for forum posts. 
• Use a person's name when you reply to their post.
• Use mycuesta.edu email for private communication.

Student Expectations

1. Read your assigned reading material prior to taking your quiz. Be prepared to discuss material and participate in the discussion board topics.
2. All writing assignments must be typed and proofread.
3. All assignments must be completed and turned in on or before the designated due date. If assignments are past due, you will receive no credit. If you have an emergency in the family, contact me through e-mail prior to your missed assignment. I do make allowances for late homework if it is a valid emergency.
4. Quizzes and exams may ONLY be made up with prior instructor permission or if a valid excuse is provided. Valid excuses include: a serious personal crisis, car accident, death in the family, and verifiable illness.
5. Academic honesty is essential to our learning community. If you are caught being academically dishonest you may receive a failing grade on the assignment in question, be dropped from the class, or be failed in the course. As a result, you may also be subject to disciplinary action outlined in the Student Code of Conduct posted in the Cuesta catalog.
6. Attendance policy. Students must log in weekly and complete the given assignments

Discussion Forum Requirements

• Each Discussion Board post is worth up to 10 (ten) points.
• Each student must participate in the group Discussion Board—as this is factored into your final grade. Please refer to participation rubric. You cannot make up missed Discussion Board Assignments.
• Refer to Netiquette Policy above

Grading Policy and Assignment Expectations

Instructor grading policy: Final grades are based on A= 90 - 100%, B = 80 - 89%, C=70-79%,

D=60-69%                                                                                    

• Assignment Feedback: I grade your assignments and provide feedback within a week of completing the assignment.
• Submission Policy: Please upload your assignments directly into Canvas using Word, PDF, or Rich Text Format RTF.