13.1 NALA & NFPA Ethics Codes

Unlike attorneys, paralegals are not licensed by state bars, so their ethical duties come from two directions: voluntary association codes (NALA and NFPA) that paralegals and employers adopt, and the binding rules governing attorneys, which reach paralegals through the supervision relationship. The NALA Certified Paralegal (CP) exam expects you to know both layers and how they interlock.

The NALA Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility

NALA — The Paralegal Association (originally the National Association of Legal Assistants) first adopted its Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility in 1975. It contains nine canons, and the exam tests them individually. Memorize the substance of each:

• Canon 1 — A paralegal must not perform any of the duties that attorneys only may perform, nor take any actions that attorneys may not take.
• Canon 2 — A paralegal may perform any task that is properly delegated and supervised by an attorney, so long as the attorney is ultimately responsible to the client, maintains a direct relationship with the client, and assumes full professional responsibility for the work product. This canon is the legal foundation of all paralegal work.
• Canon 3 — A paralegal must not: (a) engage in, encourage, or contribute to any act that could constitute the unauthorized practice of law (UPL); (b) establish attorney-client relationships, set fees, give legal opinions or advice, or represent a client before a court or agency unless that court or agency authorizes it; or (c) engage in conduct that would assist or involve the attorney in an ethics violation or create the appearance of professional impropriety.
• Canon 4 — A paralegal must use discretion and professional judgment commensurate with knowledge and experience, but must not render independent legal judgment in place of an attorney.
• Canon 5 — A paralegal must disclose paralegal status at the outset of any professional relationship with a client, attorney, court or administrative agency or its personnel, or a member of the general public.
• Canon 6 — A paralegal must strive to maintain integrity and a high degree of competency through education, training, and continuing legal education. (This canon underlies the CP renewal requirement of 50 continuing legal education hours every five years, including 5 ethics hours.)
• Canon 7 — A paralegal must protect client confidences and must not violate any rule or statute controlling privileged attorney-client communications.
• Canon 8 — A paralegal must disclose to an employer or prospective employer any pre-existing client or personal relationship that may conflict with the interests of the employer or its clients.
• Canon 9 — A paralegal must do all other things incidental, necessary, or expedient to attain these ethics and responsibilities as defined by statute or court rule.

Violations of the NALA Code are grounds for NALA to revoke the CP credential after a hearing process, even though NALA has no power to fine or bar someone from working as a paralegal.

The NALA Model Standards and Guidelines

NALA's Model Standards and Guidelines for the Utilization of Paralegals complement the Code but are addressed primarily to attorneys and employers rather than to paralegals. Their purpose is to define what proper utilization looks like. Key principles:

• The attorney remains directly responsible to the client and must supervise all delegated work.
• Three tasks may never be delegated: establishing the attorney-client relationship, setting fees, and giving legal opinions or advice — the same trio as Canon 3(b).
• The paralegal's status must be disclosed, and correspondence and documents prepared by the paralegal should make the role clear.
• Employers must protect confidentiality and screen for conflicts of interest, treating a paralegal's prior employment like an imputed conflict for the firm.
• Employers are encouraged to support pro bono participation and continuing education.

Exam trap: questions love to swap the audiences. The Code binds the paralegal; the Model Standards and Guidelines instruct the employer/attorney. Read the stem carefully.

The NFPA Model Code

The National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA) publishes its own Model Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility and Guidelines for Enforcement. Rather than canons, it is organized into numbered sections, roughly:

The NFPA Model Code also contains enforcement guidelines and disciplinary procedures. On substance, the NFPA and NALA codes agree on every major prohibition; they differ mainly in structure and emphasis. If a question asks what a code requires, the safest answers are the duties the two codes share.

How Paralegal Codes Interact with Attorney Rules

The ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct bind only lawyers, but three rules pull paralegal conduct inside their orbit:

1. Model Rule 5.3 (Responsibilities Regarding Nonlawyer Assistance) — a lawyer with supervisory authority over a nonlawyer must make reasonable efforts to ensure the person's conduct is compatible with the lawyer's professional obligations, and is responsible for the nonlawyer's conduct when the lawyer orders or ratifies it, or knows of it and fails to take reasonable remedial action. This is the attorney-side mirror of NALA Canon 2.
2. Model Rule 5.5 (Unauthorized Practice of Law) — a lawyer must not assist a nonlawyer in UPL. A paralegal who gives legal advice creates a violation for the supervising attorney, not just for the paralegal.
3. Model Rule 1.6 (Confidentiality) — the duty of confidentiality extends through the firm to paralegals and staff, which is why NALA Canon 7 and NFPA section 1.5 echo it.

The practical chain to remember for the exam: state law defines UPL → attorney rules forbid aiding UPL and require supervision → paralegal codes translate those duties into day-to-day rules for the paralegal. Paralegal codes never expand what a paralegal may do beyond what law allows; they operate entirely inside the attorney-supervision framework.

Common Exam Traps

• A question says a paralegal "may give legal advice if the attorney is not available" — false under every code; supervision never authorizes advice.
• Confusing independent legal judgment (prohibited, Canon 4) with professional discretion in performing delegated tasks (required, same canon).
• Assuming a court appearance is always UPL — Canon 3(b) carves out appearances authorized by that court or agency (e.g., certain Social Security or immigration proceedings). The default is prohibited; the exception is narrow and agency-specific.
• Believing NALA can disbar or fine a paralegal — it can only revoke its own certification.