Gulf Coast Paralegal Association, Inc.

GCPA is an affiliated association of NALA and has joined with other paralegal organizations throughout the state to form the Florida Alliance of Paralegal Associations. 

 The benefits of joining GCPA include:

 1.  A yearly subscription to the association newsletter published quarterly.

 2.  Continuing legal education credits through membership meetings and seminars that include networking opportunities and formal presentations with speakers.

 3.  Recognition for upholding a code of ethics and professional responsibility established by NALA, the American Bar Association Code of Professional Responsibility, and the Florida Bar Association Code of Professional Responsibility.

 4.   Encouragement for continuing education through scholarships offered yearly to active and student members.

5.  Access to a local job bank to assist paralegals with finding employment and law firms with finding paralegals.

GCPA Standing and Special Committees (e-mail addresses on "Contact Us" page)

Education  Mary Lou Breaz, First Vice-President

Then Education Committee shall be responsible for encouraging the continuing legal education of Association members and providing opportunities for continuing legal education through educational speakers at the monthly membership meetings and may at the direction of the Executive Board organize periodic continuing education seminars. The Education Committee shall also be responsible for disseminating all information regarding educational opportunities in the Association area to and maintaining contact with the educational institutions offering NALA approved paralegal programs.

Membership  Pat Rambosk, Second Vice-President

The Membership Committee shall be responsible for recruiting qualified individuals and entities to become members of the Association and will submit an annual plan for such recruitment to the Executive Board on an annual basis.

Finance  Lynn Evans, CP, Treasurer

1.  The Finance Committee will prepare an annual budget for each ensuing fiscal year for presentation to the Executive and then to the membership for adoption at the annual meeting.

2.  The Finance Committee will develop policies for payment of fees for membership meetings and seminars to include discounts, deadlines for payment, waiver of fees, and refunds of same. 

3.  The Finance Committee, together with the Education Committee, will prepare a budget for Association seminars to be approved by the Executive Committee at least three months prior to the date of each seminar. 

4.  The Finance Committee will arrange for inspection of financial records, accounts and related records of the Association by its members and NALA which shall be limited to reasonable purposes at those times and places which the Executive Board may fix by appropriate resolution.  The request to inspect Association records must be in writing and must be presented to the Association President.

Elections  Appointed annually

The President shall appoint a committee of no more than three (3) Active members to the Elections Committee.  No member of the Executive Board nor any person intending to declare his or her candidacy for office may serve on the Elections Committee.  The Committee shall issue a call for declarations of candidacy, receive said declarations, verify that all candidates are qualified members (as set forth in Section 3.5 above) in good standing, and prepare a ballot containing, in alphabetical order, the names of all candidates for each office.  The ballot shall be delivered to the Secretary, who shall distribute via mail or e-mail a sample ballot and proxy form to each Active member at the address shown on the current roster at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of the annual meeting.  At the Annual Meeting, the Committee shall conduct the election and shall verify and register those qualified members (as set forth in Section 3.5 above) who are present, either in person or by proxy, as eligible to vote.  The chairperson of the Elections Committee shall open the floor for additional nominations for each of the offices of the association.  If there is a nomination from the floor, the nominee’s consent must be obtained in writing, and the Committee shall verify that each such nominee is an Active member duly qualified to run for the office for which he or she is nominated before adding the nominee’s name to the ballot.

Newsletter  Nancy Beaty, CP, and Mary Lou Breaz, Editors 

The Newsletter Committee shall consist of an Editor and shall have as many members necessary to adequately perform the duties of the Committee.  The Editor will designate submission deadlines and publication dates upon approval of the Association President.  A newsletter shall be distributed to all members on a quarterly basis. 

Website  S. Randon Randolph, EJD, Manager

The Website Committee shall be comprised of a website manager responsible for the creation and maintenance of an Association website that includes the names and contact information of the Association officers, meeting and seminar notices, links to other resources relevant to membership interests, and the Association Newsletter.  Other website content shall be approved by the Executive Board. 

Bar Liaison  Andrea Mayes

The Bar Liaison Committee shall consist of no fewer than two (2) members who shall be responsible for representing the Association at such Bar Association meetings as may be appropriate and for promoting good relations between the Bar, the Association, and NALA.  The Committee will make regular reports of its liaison activities to the Executive Board and at monthly membership meetings.

Meeting Coordination

The Meeting Coordination Committee shall include a Coordinator and as many committee members as may be necessary to adequately perform the duties of the Committee.  The Committee shall make all arrangements for the monthly Association meetings, including registration, name tags, speakers and topics, speaker gifts, CLE forms for NALA credits and door prizes (when applicable).

Job Bank  Nancy Beaty, CP

It shall be the responsibility of the Job Bank to keep Association members informed of any career or job opportunities for paralegals in the legal profession or law-related businesses. 

Audit

  1.   The President shall appoint at the annual meeting a three-person committee to audit the Association’s financial records for the previous year.  Alternatively, the Executive Board may engage the services of an independent professional auditor whose fee is to be pre-approved by the Executive Board, and who shall perform all of the tasks delegated to the Audit Committee outlined below.

   2.  The Audit Committee shall review all of the financial records of the Association including, but not limited to, all canceled checks, check registers, receipts/supporting docu-mentation, and general ledgers, and shall report to the Executive Board all inconsistencies, irregularities, and disbursements for which inadequate documentation is found.

  3.  The Audit Committee shall reconcile deposits and disburse-

ments to the bank statements and general ledger.

  4.  The Audit Committee shall determine whethertheTreasurer

has fulfilled the duties required by the Bylaws and Standing

Rules of the Association and shall report to the Executive

Board.

  5.  The Audit Committee shall prepare and present a written

report of its finding to the Executive Board upon completion of

the audit.  A summary of the Committee’s report shall be pub-

lished in the next issue of the Association’s Newsletter.

Special Committee - Outreach 

Position Open

The outreach committee will compile data on all outreach

activities by the Executive Board, Standing Committees and

Association members in order to ascertain the effectiveness of

such activities for strategic planning.

Membership Categories

Mail completed application and payment to:

Patricia Rambosk, City of Naples, 735 Eighth Street South, Naples, FL  34102

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