tapa timestapa times

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 President’s Message

2 Calendar

3 TAPA Committees & Chairpersons

4 Board of Directors & Members /

Publication Guidelines

5 Notice of Elections

6 Honors and Awards

7 Recap: 37th Annual NALA

Convention

9 LEAP

11 TAPA Fall Seminar

18 Sustaining Members

TAPA TIMESTAPA TIMES

NO LEGAL ADVICE

Nothing contained in this document or on this website should be construed as legal advice. State law

prohibits paralegals or legal assistants from offering legal advice. Should you require legal assistance,

please contact the State Bar of Oklahoma at www.okbar.org.

A Message from the President Dear TAPA members:

This month I promised to report on my experience at the 2012

NALA Convention in Omaha, Nebraska but unfortunately work

demands inhibited my ability to attend the Convention. So I

decided this would be a good time to write about work and the

flexibility we all must have to stay focused and remain employed.

According to Webster's dictionary, “flexible” is defined as:

“characterized by a ready capability to adapt to new, different, or

changing requirements”.

There have been many books and articles written about "change".

I know that I have read a few myself, as I experienced different

changes in my career that were beyond my control. I think the most

important thing to remember about change is not what it does to you

but rather how you react to it.

I ran across a very small book with a very big message that I

would like to share with you. The message is Don Miguel Ruiz's

Code for Life and consists of the following four rules:

RULE 1 Be impeccable with your word - Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

RULE 2 Don’t take anything personally - Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

RULE 3 Don’t make assumptions - Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

(Continued on page 2)

Volume 16 September 2012 TULSA AREATULSA AREA

PARALEGAL ASSOCIATIONPARALEGAL ASSOCIATION

Peggy Landrum, ACP

TAPA MEMBERSHIP

Active Membership is open to those employed as paralegals, legal assistants, paralegal educators and attorneys. ($55.00 year)

Associate Membership is open to students currently enrolled in a paralegal program. Only active members may vote and hold an office in TAPA. However, Associate Members can participate in any committee. ($25.00 year)

Sustaining Membership is available to non-paralegals that perform services, provide products, or are in some other way related to the legal profession. Sustaining Members may not vote and hold office ($100.00 year)

Volume 16 September 2012

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Oct. 19 Deadline for registration for TAPA’s Fall Seminar

Oct. 23 5:30-9:00p—Fall Seminar at Hibachi Grill (72nd Memorial)

Nov. 14 Membership Meeting (Oneok Cafeteria, Room 1) - Ethics Panel: NALA Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility (1.0 hours of Ethics CLE)

RULE 4

Always do your best - Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse and regret.

As we approach the conclusion of another year, TAPA has the following events to offer you:

In October TAPA will hold a 3 hr. CLE seminar in lieu of the regular monthly meeting; in November

TAPA members will be voting for TAPA officers for 2013 so this is an important meeting that you

will not want to miss; additionally the November and December regular TAPA member meetings

will address "ethics" to give TAPA members an opportunity to earn 2 hrs. of FREE Ethics CLE.

I wish you each a very good year-end and ask that you make an extra effort to attend one of

the remaining 2012 TAPA regular membership meetings. Thank you for giving me the opportunity

to be your 2012 TAPA president.

Best regards,

Under the auspices of NALA, TAPA members are required to adhere to NALA’s Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibilities. NALA strives to align its values with those of the American Bar Association and hold disciplinary authority over members breaching these regulations.

BOARD OF DIRECTOR MEETINGS

All TAPA members are welcome and encouraged to

attend board meetings.

The next meeting is

N ovember 2, 2012 (6p to 7p) University of Tulsa—Collins Hall

Park in Westby lot behind the building

The following list names each committee and the chairperson:


Associations Liaison

(TCBA & OBA) Stevie Mark, ACP

Hall Estill

594-0536 (work)

[email protected]

Barbara Lane, CP

Jones, Gotcher & Bogan

581-8268 (work)

[email protected]

Bylaws & Standing Rules Richard Wilde

[email protected]

CLA/CP Study Group Andrea Grabow, CP

Atkinson, Haskins, Nellis,

Brittingham, Gladd & Carwile

732-4214 (work)

[email protected]

Credentials Richard Wilde

[email protected]

Education/Programs

Terri Cooper

Tulsa Health Department

595-4421 (work)

899-7428 (cell)

[email protected]

David Loftin

687-4900 (work)

[email protected]

Ethics

Richard Wilde

[email protected]

Finance

Leila Safavi

Stuart, Biolchini & Turner

582-3311 (work)

[email protected]

Historian

Barbara Lane, CP

Jones, Gotcher & Bogan

581-8268 (work)

[email protected]

Job Bank

Mona Jenkins, ACP

New Gulf Energy, LLC

727-3020 (work)

[email protected]

Publications

Reagan DeWitt-Henderson,

ACP

The Law Office of McLaine

DeWitt Herndon, P.L.L.C.

585-3337 (work)

[email protected]

Publicity/Public Relations

David Loftin

687-4900 (work)

[email protected]

Scholarships

Judy C. Hesley, CP

Wilkerson, Wassall & Warman

582-4440 (work)

[email protected]

Stevie Mark, ACP

Hall Estill

594-0536 (work)

[email protected]

Student Liaison

Lorena Shingleton, ACP

(304) 561-5591 (cell)

[email protected]

TAPA Website/Facebook

Andrea Grabow, CP

Atkinson, Haskins, Nellis,

Brittingham, Gladd & Carwile

732-4214 (work)

[email protected]

Welcome Table Barbara Blackburn, ACP

381-1776 (cell)

[email protected]

VISIT TAPA’S

WEBSITE

www.tulsaparalegals.org

TAPA is an

affiliate of National

Association of Legal

Assistants

mailto:[email protected]


















TAPA PULICATION SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Classified Advertising: $100 1/2 page 6 issues & 1 year sustaining membership

$50 1/4 page 6 issues

$25 Business card size 6 issues

TAPA’s Personals: TAPA’s Personal submissions may include personal, work related

and award announcements, pictures, etc. and is free to TAPA members.

PRESIDENT PEGGY LANDRUM, ACP

VICE PRESIDENT (MEMBERSHIP) MONA JENKINS, ACP

SECRETARY ANGELA HARRIS, CP

TREASURER LEILA SAFAVI

PARLIAMENTARIAN JUNE BROWN, CP

NALA LIAISON TRACY MOSZ, CP

ASSOCIATIONS LIAISON (TCBA & OBA) STEVIE MARK, ACP

BARBARA LANE, CP

BYLAWS/STANDING RULES RICHARD WILDE, CP

CLA STUDY GROUP ANDREA GRABOW, CP

CREDENTIALS RICHARD WILDE, CP

EDUCATION / PROGRAMS TERRI COOPER, CP

DAVID LOFTIN

ETHICS RICHARD WILDE, CP

FINANCE LEILA SAFAVI

HISTORIAN BARBARA LANE, CP

JOB BANK MONA JENKINS, ACP

PUBLICATIONS REAGAN DEWITT-HENDERSON, ACP

PUBLICITY / PUBLIC RELATIONS DAVID LOFTIN

SCHOLARSHIPS JUDY HESLEY, CP

STEVIE MARK, ACP

STUDENT LIAISON LORENA SHINGLETON, ACP

TAPA WEBSITE / FACEBOOK ANDREA GRABOW, CP

WELCOME TABLE BARBARA BLACKBURN, ACP


NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, that the TAPA General Election for 2013 will be held at noon on Wednesday, November 14, 2012, at ONEOK, Tulsa, Oklahoma, for the following offices:

President 1 year term

Vice President 1 year term

Secretary 1 year term

Treasurer 1 year term

NALA Liaison 1 year term

Nominations will be accepted from the floor on the day of the election and at any time prior to the election.

As of this Notice the following have been nominated. They are:

President – Peggy Landrum

Vice President – Mona Jenkins

Secretary – June Brown

Treasurer – Leila Safavi

NALA Liaison – Tracy Mosz

For additional information or to place a name into nomination, please contact Judy Hesley at [email protected]


NALA’s Past Presidents

TAPA NOTICE OF ELECTIONS

From left: Karen Greer McGee, ACP (2010-2012); Linda J. Wolfe, ACP (2009-10); Vicki J. Kunz,

ACP (2002-04); Vicki V. Voisin, ACP (1998-2000); Amy J. Hill, ACP (1996-97); Karen M. Dunn,

ACP (1992-94); Karen Sanders-West, ACP (1986-88); Kay E. Kasic, CP (1984-86)



Stephanie “Stevie” Mark, ACP was recognized as

the 2012 Paralegal of Year by the Tulsa County Bar Associa-

tion. Stevie is a 30-year paralegal and has been with Hall

Estill for 25 years. She primarily practices in the Litigation

section. She is a founding member of TAPA and was the re-

cipient of the 2006 NALA Affiliate Award for her out-

standing contribution and dedication to the Paralegal profes-

sion. Congratulations, Stevie.

Cassandra Oliver, ACP was elected as

Second Vice President for NALA at the NALA convention in Omaha, Nebraska.

Tracy Mosz was honored with the 2012 Affiliated

Associations Affiliate Award at the Affiliated Associations Awards Ceremony at the NALA Convention in Omaha, Nebraska on July 28, 2011. Peggy Landrum nominated Tracy for this award. Affiliate Awards are in recognition of stead-fast service and valuable contributions to the members’ affiliated associations.

HONORS AND AWARDS

Cassandra Oliver, ACP (TAPA member and NALA 2nd Vice President) and Ann L. Atkinson, ACP (NALA President)

Karen Greer McGee, ACP (2011-2012 NALA President), Tracy L. Mosz, ACP (TAPA member and NALA Liaison) and Debra L. Overstreet, ACP (TAPA member and 2011-2012 NALA Affiliated Associations Director)

Stevie Mark, ACP (TAPA member;

Associations Liaison (TCBA & OBA);

Scholarships


More than 300 paralegals gathered from

across the United States at the NALA

convention this year in Omaha, Nebraska.

Coincidentally, Ann Atkinson is from

Omaha and was inaugurated as NALA’s

president this year. Attendance was up

mainly due to the fact that 50 paralegals

attended from Nebraska.

This was my 5th convention. My first was the

33rd annual convention in Oklahoma City. It

was so much fun and I was hooked. This

year, I was the only TAPA board member

that was able to attend. Peggy Landrum and

Mona Jenkins had planned to attend, but

couldn’t due to work and family issues.

However, I was not the only attendee from

TAPA. Luckily for me, Cassandra Oliver,

Debbie Overstreet and Beth Nellis were also

in attendance. I was able to reconnect with

paralegals I have met at previous

conventions from Charlotte, North Carolina

and Rapid City, South Dakota. I also made

some new friends from Farmington, New

Mexico, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina,

Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Claremore,

Oklahoma. I enrolled in the e-Discovery

institute and sharpened my skills in this

area. As NALA Liaison, I also attended all of

the meetings.

At the membership forum on Wednesday, I

learned that NALA is seeking NCCA

certification for the CP/CLA exam. The

National Commission for Certifying

Agencies (NCCA) sets the standards that

must be met by organizations offering

certification programs. A bylaw amendment

was overwhelmingly adopted allowing

NALA to proceed with national

accreditation. This will advance NALA’s

future and strengthen the exam because

NALA will now have the only accredited

paralegal certification exam in the nation. At

this meeting, the 2012-13 LEAP class was

introduced. We were asked to introduce

ourselves and to identify which animal

would best describe your personality. I was

a little taken aback by this question and not

quite prepared to answer it. We were going

to the rainforest at the Omaha Zoo that

evening and so my mind immediately

gravitated to a rainforest creature and since I

know that my personality is “orange,” I

announced to the membership that I was an

orange rainforest bird?!?

What do you think – am I a tawny-capped

euphonia? It is a little bird with an orange

mohawk.

At the meeting, we also learned that NALA

now has an app for Facts & Findings. This

app can be downloaded on your iPhone,

iPad, and Android device. Search NALA on

iTunes or within the Android store.

Visit www.nala.org/FnFipad.pdf or

www.nala.org/FnFAndroid.pdf for more

information.

On Thursday, I attended the Affiliated

37th Annual NALA Convention Recap by Tracy Mosz, ACP

http://www.nala.org/FnFipad.pdf

http://www.nala.org/FnFAndroid.pdf

Associations Annual Meeting. At this

meeting, elections of the Affiliated

Associations Director and Secretary were

held. Following the election was the

Affiliates Exchange presentation Shaping the

Future: NCPA’s Mentoring Program. The

North Carolina Paralegal Association

mentoring program has 75 mentees and over

30 mentors. I believe this is a program that

TAPA should also institute. We have a great

CLA study group program and a mentoring

program for the newly certified paralegals in

our association is a natural progression.

During the roundtable discussions, I came

away with many great ideas for video

streaming our CLE monthly meetings and

how to promote TAPA through social media.

And last but not

least, I attended

Vicki Kunz and

Vicki Vois in ’s

Professional Power

P l a y b o o k

presentation. They

described how to

create your own

game plan, develop

your team, and face

your challenges to

prepare for game

day. I loved it and continue to be Vicki

Voisin’s biggest fan!!

As you can see, I come away from every

convention with more knowledge and

enthusiasm for our profession. If you would

like to help TAPA institute a mentoring

program, institute video streaming for our

monthly meetings or want to help us

promote TAPA through social media, please

contact me at [email protected] or

anyone else of the Board. I would love to

make you a part of our team.

TAPA congratulates Ashley Armstrong, CP and

Michelle Maxwell, CP who passed the National

Association of Legal Assistant’s Certification Exam in May 2012. Way to go!

Vicki Voisin

NALA Founders Award


Debra L. Overstreet, ACP (TAPA member and 2011-2012 NALA Affiliated Associations Director), Cassandra Oliver, ACP (TAPA member and NALA 2nd Vice President) and Ruth S. Conley,

ACP (NALA Regional IV Director)



As many of you may already know, I was

selected as a member of the LEAP Class of

2013. I attended a few of the 2012 Leap

class group presentations at the

convention this summer. I was recently

informed that my fellow TAPA member

and friend, Debra Overstreet, ACP will be

my group’s mentor. Debbie and another

fellow TAPA member and friend, Lorena

Shingleton, ACP, were members of the first

LEAP class in 2007.

Each LEAP class group will make a

presentation to the NALA Board of

Directors at the NALA convention in

Portland next summer. One of the

presentations will be selected by the Board

to be presented during the Annual Meeting

of the NALA Membership on July 12, 2013.

I sincerely hope that my group is selected

to present to the membership!! The

winning group this year had a safari theme

and was quite entertaining.

LEAP is based on the common-sense notion that it is better to acquaint volunteers with the concepts and challenges of association leadership before they are elected to leadership positions

rather than to rely on “orientation” sessions after elected leaders take office. Early leadership training and support will reinforce the strength and progress of the association as new leaders assume their roles prepared to take charge right away. Established in 2007, the LEAP curricula has gone through some modifications in response to member needs and suggestions. Beginning with the 2010-11 class, the curricula was restructured to be more supportive of NALA members who are also serving as leaders of their state and local affiliated organizations. With this new direction, the program better serves to support leadership development for NALA affiliated associations. The current focus is on serving state and local affiliated associations, and developing skills that support their goals and growth. Participation in LEAP will also enhance the personal leadership skills used by NALA members in business and work environments. The new curricula goals and objectives are as follows:

Developing a culture of trust among the association leaders and members leadership vision and mission.

Aligning the association’s services and programs with its mission.

Studying and understanding “7 Measures of Success of Remarkable Associations,” a recent ground-breaking study that examines what separates good from remarkable associations. We specifically address associations’ commitment to purpose, commitment to action and commitment to analysis and feedback.

NALA’s Leadership Enhancement and Preparation - LEAP By Tracy Mosz, ACP

Using leadership tools such as public speaking to deliver your association's message and lateral and parallel thinking to define association values and mission.

I have already begun some of the reading

for this LEAP program and have

participated in a few of the group

conference calls. This reading has already

provided me with many tools to be a

better leader for TAPA. The article,

“Honoring the Human Element” by Joanne

Smikle was particularly inspirational for

me. The main thing I took away from this

article is “Members matter.” I couldn’t

agree more which is why I instituted the

early membership renewal prize during

my term as President of TAPA.

Beth Nellis, another fellow TAPA member

and friend was a mentor for last year’s

LEAP class and is a mentor again this year.

As you can see, our affiliated association is

very active in NALA’s leadership and I

encourage you to get involved with us.

LEAP applications forms are available in

early spring of each year, and due by May

15 for the ensuing year. LEAP class

members are notified in June.

To qualify, LEAP participants must meet each of the following criteria:

Active NALA member

Hold a current Certified Paralegal credential

Experience volunteering in local or state paralegal associations and/or community non-profit organizations

There is no enrollment fee for volunteering for the LEAP program. However, participants will have a substantial time commitment and some incidental costs associated with attending the requisite convention meeting. NALA will reimburse participants for one nights lodging during the convention at the end of the one-year program, during which LEAP group presentations are made to the NALA Board of Directors and/or NALA membership.


Analysis

Reinforcing its view that

courts should try to stay

mostly out of the way of

politicians drawing new

election districts, the Su-

preme Court on Tuesday —

by an apparent unanimous

vote — told lower-court

judges not to insist on close-

to-zero differences in the

population of each of a

state’s districts for choosing

members of the U.S. House

of Representatives. “Zero

variance” in population is

not the new constitutional

norm for redistricting, the

Court made clear. Just be-

cause computers can pro-

duce almost exactly equal-

sized districts, the Constitu-

tion does not require it, the

decision said.

After sitting on the case

from West Virginia all sum-

mer long, the Court pro-

duced an eight-page, un-

signed ruling that largely

deferred to the wishes of

that state’s legislature on

how to craft the three dis-

tricts for choosing its House

delegation. The opinion can

be found here. The new rul-

ing came in the case of

Tennant v. Jefferson County

Commission (docket 11-

1184). The Justices had tem-

porarily blocked the lower-

court decision at issue last

January, so the legislature’s

plan has been in use for this

year’s House of Representa-

tives in the state.

The new ruling marked the

second time in this election

year that the Court had

overturned a lower federal

court decision following the

new round of legislative re-

districting after the 2010

Census. On January 20, the

Court found that a three-

judge District Court in San

Antonio had gone too far to

substitute its own judgment

for that of the legislature in

Texas in drawing new

boundaries for elections to

Congress and to both

houses of the state legisla-

ture (Perry v. Perez, docket

11-713).

Tuesday’s ruling gave state

legislators constitutional

permission to have some

variation in size between

congressional districts, if the

lawmakers do so to protect

incumbents from having to

run against each other, to

avoid splitting up counties,

and to avoid moving many

people into a new district

from the one where they

had previously cast their

votes. In what appeared to

be a novel new declaration,

the Court stressed that

lower courts should not de-

mand that a state prove spe-

cifically how each of those

goals would be satisfied by

moving away from equally

populated districts. And, in

another legal innovation, the

Court said that a variation

that is not really very big

does not become a constitu-

tionally suspect one just be-

cause a sophisticated com-

puter program could be

used to avoid nearly all such

variations.

If the difference between a

state’s largest House district

and its smallest one is small

— such as the 0.79% devia-

tion in the West Virginia

plan — that does not be-

come unconstitutionally


large just because it could be

avoided by “technological

advances in redistricting

and mapping software.”

The three-judge District

Court in Charleston had

nullified the legislature’s

House plan, concluding that

“zero variance” is now con-

stitutionally required be-

cause it can be achieved by

today’s computer technol-

ogy. Since it is possible, it

must be the legislature’s

goal, unless it can trace

variations from it to specific

policy goals that are consti-

tutionally acceptable. It

ruled that the legislature

had before it other plans

that would have reduced

the variance closer to zero,

and that it has not justified

the failure to do so.

West Virginia, after the 2010

Census, was in the same po-

sition that virtually all states

are: a mobile population

makes enough shifts over

the span of a decade that

maps drawn earlier to gov-

ern election boundaries be-

come out of date, and old

maps fail to satisfy the con-

stitutional goal of working

toward “one person, one

vote.” West Virginia did not

gain any seats in the House

as a result of the shifts re-

corded in the 2010 Census,

so it kept the three that it

had.

The state’s legislature has

often boasted that it strives,

in new redistricting efforts,

not to make broad changes

in district boundaries, and

claims proudly that it does

not manipulate the bounda-

ries to favor one party over

the other. It also prides itself

on not shifting population

around between districts

any more than seems mini-

mally necessary. Thus, in

the new plan it approved in

2011, it shifted only one

county — Mason — into a

new district.

An “ideal” House district in

West Virginia would con-

tain 617,665 people. The

state’s largest district in the

plan, the Second, had 3197

more people than that, and

its smallest, the First, fell

short by 1674 persons. That

is what accounted for a total

variance or deviation of

0.79%. The challengers to

the plan contended that the

legislature could have done

much better; indeed, one

plan before it would have

had only one of three dis-

tricts with less than the

“equal” number, and it fell

short by one single person.

The legislature, however,

did not accept that plan, be-

cause it found that it contra-

dicted its policy goals of

protecting incumbents,

keeping counties intact, and

minimizing population

shifts between districts.

Tuesday’s decision in plain

English:

Each federal Census, con-

ducted every ten years, is

followed by actions in state

legislatures across the coun-

try to draw up new maps

that define the boundaries

of districts for electing mem-

bers of the U.S. House of

Representatives, state legis-

latures, and some other leg-

islative and elective bodies.

In the interval since the

most recent prior Census,

people tend to move around

quite a bit, and so the popu-

lation of districts may grow

or decline, often with the

result that some districts

wind up with more than

their equal share of political

power in elections, and

some would wind up with

less. When that happens,

there is a potential violation

of the constitutional rule

that the Supreme Court laid

down years ago — that is,

that each voter’s power at

the polls should be equal; in

other words, each person

eligible to vote should have

one vote that counts as


much as the vote cast by any other eligible

person. The same type of imbalance also can

occur if an entire state gains or loses popula-

tion; when that happens, it can mean that the

state will gain more seats in the House of

Representatives, or lose some that it had. The

government decides how many House seats

go to each state after a new Census, and the

resulting shifts obviously require redistricting

in those states.

Because of highly sophisticated computers,

capable of gathering data about population

down to a city block, or even to just one

apartment building, it is actually possible to

create maps that will have each district within

a state holding the same number of people —

absolute equality of representation. But the

Supreme Court has often ruled that absolute

equality sometimes can be sacrificed — at

least to a small degree — so that those draft-

ing new election districts (doing

“redistricting”) can shape districts so as to

avoid having candidates of one party running

against each other in the same district. An-

other reason that legislatures can take into

account in drawing new districts is that they

do not like to split up counties or cities and

put part of them in one district and part in

another. Again, that is allowed under the

Constitution, if the resulting differences in

population between districts is not great. And

a third reason is that some legislatures don’t

like to make people give up the districts they

were in, and find themselves in a new and

unfamiliar one.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court said once

again that state legislatures can have some

inequality in the population of districts, if

that is done, within reason, to serve the other

goals that redistricting can be arranged to

meet. The Court said explicitly that the Con-

stitution does not guarantee absolute equality

in population of districts, even if that could

be achieved by high-tech computers. It also

cautioned judges around the country not to

go too far to second-guess how legislatures

work out the various and competing interests

that they confront in redistricting.

Lyle Denniston, Opinion recap: Hedging on

“one person, one vote”, SCOTUSBLOG (Sep. 25,

2 0 1 2 , 2 : 3 1 P M ) , h t t p : / /

www.scotusblog.com/2012/09/opinion-

recap-hedging-on-oe-person-one-vote/


Join NALA in Oregon in 2013


2012 Sustaining Members


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