Course Title

Foundations for the Legal Office

Course Description

This course will provide students with a strong foundation for placement in the Legal Office Procedures course. It includes entry-level skills for working in any office .

Contact

Gina Hubbard
(405) 743-5117
ghubb@okcareertech.org

Knowledge and Skills

BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS

• Demonstrate the use of proper written English in all legal documentation
• Demonstrate appropriate grammar and word usage when drafting legal documents
• Demonstrate appropriate punctuation when drafting legal documents
• Demonstrate appropriate number usage when drafting legal documents
• Demonstrate appropriate capitalization when drafting legal documents
• Demonstrate appropriate spelling when drafting legal documents
• Demonstrate good composition and expression when drafting legal documents

WORD PROCESSING FUNDAMENTALS:

• Start Word; exit word

• Identify components of the Word document window, including Toolbars

• Save a new document; save an existing document with a new name; open a new document window

• Print a document; use Print Preview

• Use Word Count

• E-mail documents from within software

• Use Research Task Pane

• Display formatting marks

• Create documents with Wizards

• Use Smart Tags

• Modify the Document Summary
• Enter and format text
• Check spelling and grammar while typing
• Format characters (font attributes)
• Use Click and Type
• Use AutoCorrect feature
• Create footnotes
• Modify styles
• Move and copy text; collect and paste using Clipboard
• Find/insert synonyms
• AutoFormat while typing text
• Clear formatting
• Insert current date into a document
• Add borders to paragraphs
• Format paragraphs (alignment, first-line indent, hanging indent, line spacing)
• Sort paragraphs
• Set custom tabs using the ruler and tabs dialog box
• Add borders to paragraphs
• Bullet a list
• Use Page Setup to change margins
• Insert page numbers in headers/footers
• Work with automatic page breaks; enter manual page breaks; enter line breaks; enter non-breaking spaces
• Use GoTo
• Find/replace text
• Create and print envelopes and labels
• Bullet a list
• Create a table with the Insert Table button; resize table columns; change table alignment
• Enter data in a table
• Insert, resize, move graphics
• Insert symbols
• Create and navigate to hyperlinks

SPREADSHEET FUNDAMENTALS

• Start and Exit Excel
• Identify components of the Excel worksheet window, including cells, worksheets, Toolbars, the Formula bar, and the Status bar
• Save and print a worksheet and a workbook; save a workbook with same file name or with a different name; open a new workbook
• Select a cell; enter text, formulas, and functions into cells; correct errors while typing data into cells and after entering data into cells
• Use AutoCorrect
• Use AutoFormat
• Use the Name Box to select a cell
• Change the view of the worksheet
• Use Undo
• Clear a cell or range of cells; clear an entire worksheet
• Use the Excel Help system
• Use Smart Tags and Option Buttons
• Check Spelling in single and multiple worksheets
• Use Drag/Drop and Cut/Paste
• Format a worksheet (font attributes, background colors, borders, wrap text, rotate text, drop shadow)
• Apply different formats to numbers
• Format adjacent cells; format nonadjacent cells
• Change column widths and row heights
• Insert and delete rows, columns, single cells or a range of cells
• Freeze portions of a worksheet; split the worksheet window into panes
• Use Format Painter
• Name sheets, reorder sheets, and apply color to sheet tabs
• E-mail a workbook from within Excel
• Use AutoCalculate
• Understand and apply the order of operations when creating formulas
• Enter formulas using different methods (point mode, fill handle, keyboard)
• Use AutoSum, AVERAGE, MAX, and MIN functions
• Create formulas; verify formulas using Range Finder
• Display System Date
• Understand and apply absolute and relative cell referencing in formulas/functions
• Understand and apply the IF Function
• Analyze data in a worksheet by changing values
• Understand and apply Goal Seek
• Apply Conditional Formatting
• Create a series using the Fill Handle
• Add a chart to a worksheet or on a separate chart sheet; format various aspects of charts

DATABASE FUNDAMENTALS

• Start and Exit Access
• Identify components of the Access window, including Title Bar, Menu Bar, Toolbars, Taskbar, Status Bar, Database Window, Shortcut Menus and AutoCorrect
• Use the Access Help system
• Create and name a database
• Apply validation rules (required field, range, default value, collection of legal values, format, saving rules, updating a table with validation rules, creating and using Lookup fields)
• Referential Integrity (understand relationships and specify referential integrity, cascade update/delete, use sub datasheets, find duplicate records, find unmatched records)
• Order records in tables (ascending, descending, using multiple fields)
• Creating and using Indexes (single-field and multiple-field indexes)
• Create and save a Table (define field names, field types, field properties, and descriptions)
• Add records to a Table
• Close a Table; exit Access
• Add additional Tables to a database; add records to the new Table
• Preview and print the contents of a Table
• Change the structure of a table (change field size, add a new field, delete a field, update the restructured database)
• Resize columns and format a datasheet
• Create forms using the AutoForm option; add records using a form; switch between Form View and Datasheet View
• Maintain a database:  add, edit, delete, search for records
• Switch between Views in a database
• Filter Records (filter by selection, filter by form, advanced filter/sort)
• Create reports using the Report Wizard; view a report; print a report
• Create and run Select queries
• Display all fields
• Display selected fields
• Run a query; print the results; clear the design grid
• Save and close a query
• Use various types of data in criteria (text, numeric, comparison operators, wildcards, AND criteria, OR criteria, AND/OR criteria)
• Sort data in queries (omit duplicates, sort on multiple keys, Top-Values)
• Join Tables in queries (change Join properties; restrict records in a Join)
• Calculations
• Create calculated fields in queries
• Change format and caption
• Use grouping and calculate statistics (sum, average, max, min, count)
• Use criteria in calculating statistics
• Create Crosstab queries
• Process Mass Changes (update queries, delete queries, append queries, make-table queries)

PRESENTATION FUNDAMENTALS

• Start PowerPoint; exit PowerPoint
• Identify components of the PowerPoint window including Views, Placeholders, Text Areas, Mouse Pointer, Scroll Bars, Status Bar, Menu Bar, Standard Toolbar, Formatting Toolbar, and Drawing Toolbar
• Create presentations in Slide Layout view and in Outline view
• Choose and apply Design Templates
• Check a presentation for spelling and consistency
• Use the PowerPoint Help system
• Save a presentation; save a presentation with a new name
• Use Smart Tags
• Use Automatic Layout Options to undo a layout change
• Create a folder and save a presentation
• Delete slides; hide slides
• Add speaker notes; print speaker notes
• Create slides using various slide layouts
• End a slide show with a black slide

• Add headers and footers to Outline pages

• Enter text on slides; correct errors (delete text, replace text)
• Format text (font, font attributes)
• Add/delete slides in a presentation
• Create slides with single-level and multi-level bulleted lists
• Change the font and font attributes
• Find and replace text
• Use the thesaurus to find synonyms
• Insert ClipArt with/without a Content Placeholder; move, resize ClipArt; animate ClipArt
• Animate ClipArt
• Apply Animation Schemes to a slide show
• Insert a Clip into a content placeholder
• Size and move clips; ungroup and ungroup a clip
• Insert a basic table; enter data in the table; format a table cell
• Create an Organization Chart Diagram with multiple levels; scale organization chart
• Add text to various levels in the organization chart
• Change the shape layout (organization chart)
• Select a WordArt Style; enter WordArt text; format WordArt
• Display grids and guides and position a WordArt object; hide guides
• Add a sound effect
• Add an action button and apply action settings; run a slide show with an action button
• Scale an action button; format an action button
• Display guides and position an action button; rotate an action button
• Add a slide transition effect to a slide show
• Change the slide layout
• Change the color of a PowerPoint object
• Display the Slide Master; replace the Slide Master
• Apply format changes to the master slide and/or title master
• Change the preset design scheme
• Apply a new design template
• Rearrange slides
• Add a picture to create a custom background
• Change the presentation template color scheme
• Modify the footer on the slide Master
• Print a presentation as slides, outline, handouts, notes, and transparency
• Print slides as handouts
• View a presentation in Slide Show View (advance through a slide show manually; use the Popup Menu to go to a specific slide and to end a slide show)
• Run an animated slide show

LEGAL TERMINOLOGY

• Correctly spell, pronounce, and define general legal terms
• Correctly spell, pronounce, and define legal terms related to the courts and legal system

Brainbench:

http://www.brainbench.com

Career Cluster Resources for Business, Management and Administration:

http://www.careerclusters.org/clusters/16cc.php?cluster=ba

Accountability Measures, Assessments, or Evaluation Procedures

Required Brainbench Certifications (or equivalent industry certification):

• Word Fundamentals (any version)
• PowerPoint Fundamentals (any version)

Optional Additional Competency Testing:           

• Excel (any level)
• MS Access (any version/level)
• Written English
• Business Writing
• Spelling

Brainbench:

http://www.okcareertech.org/certify

Industry Alignments

Brainbench

Curriculum Resources

West Publishing Co. - Basic Manual for the Lawyer’s Assistant

ISBN 0-314-2570309

Office XP Core – Hinkle, Cain, Marple, Stewart –A Professional Approach, Glencoe - ISBN#0-07-825299-7

Microsoft Office XP – Pasewark – Course Technology

New Perspectives on Microsoft Office XP – Course Technology

Shelly Cashman Series, Course Technology, 2002: Microsoft Word 2002 Comprehensive Concepts and Techniques

Legal Studies:  Terminology and Transcription, 5E, Thomson South-Western    ISBN:  0-538-43722-7

Legal Terminology with Flash Cards, Thomson Learning  ISBN:   0-7668-2761-5

Gregg Reference Manual 10^th Ed., McGraw-Hill ISBN:  0-07-293653-3

Basic Worksheets on Style, Grammar, and Usage, 10^th ed., McGraw-Hill,

ISBN:  0-07-293654-1

This Course Found In These Career Majors