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Nc Paralegal Certification Exam 2025
Certified Q&A
paralegal (or legal assistant) - correct-answer-A person qualified by education,
training, or work experience who is employed or retained by a lawyer, law office,
corporation, governmental agency, or other entity who performs specifically
delegated substantive legal work, for which a lawyer is responsible.
parallel citation - correct-answer-A second (or third) citation for a given case.
When a case is published in more than one reporter, each citation is a parallel
citation to the other(s).
parole evidence rule - correct-answer-Agreement between two parties, creating
an enforceable obligation to do, or to refrain from doing, a particular thing. (I
thought this had to do with what evidence you can and can't bring in breach of
contract disputes when they're arguing the terms of the contract...)
partner - correct-answer-A person who has undertaken to operate a business
jointly with one or more other persons. Each partner is a co-owner of the business
firm.
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partnership - correct-answer-An association of two or more persons to carry on as
co-owners a business for profit.
party - correct-answer-With respect to lawsuits, the plaintiff or the defendant.
Some cases involve multiple parties (more than one plaintiff or defendant).
passive listening - correct-answer-The act of listening attentively to the speaker's
message and responding to the speaker by providing verbal or nonverbal cues
that encourage the speaker to continue; in effect, saying "I'm listening, please go
on."
patent - correct-answer-A government grant that gives an inventor the exclusive
right or privilege to make, use, or sell that invention for a limited time period.
(HOW LONG?)
paternity suit - correct-answer-A lawsuit brought by an unmarried mother to
establish that a certain male is the biological father of her child. DNA testing or a
comparable procedure is often used to determine paternity.
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peremptory challenge - correct-answer-A voir dire challenge to exclude a
potential juror from serving on the jury without any supporting reason or cause.
Peremptory challenges based on racial or gender criteria are illegal.
performance - correct-answer-In contract law, the fulfillment of one's duties
arising under a contract with another; the normal way of discharging one's
contractual obligations.
personal liability - correct-answer-An individual's personal responsibility for debts
or obligations. The owners of sole proprietorships and partnerships are personally
liable for the debts and obligations incurred by their business firms. If their firms
go bankrupt or cannot meet debts as they become due, the owners will be
personally responsible for paying the debts.
personal property - correct-answer-Any property that is not real property.
Generally any property that is movable or intangible is classified as personal
property.
personal representative - correct-answer-A person who manages the financial
affairs of another person who is unable to do so.
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persuasive authority - correct-answer-Any legal authority, or source of law, that a
court may look to for guidance but on which it need not rely in making its
decision. Persuasive authorities include cases from other jurisdictions or
secondary sources of law, such as scholarly treatises.
petition for divorce - correct-answer-The document filed with the court to initiate
divorce proceedings. The requirements governing the form and content of a
divorce petition very from state to state.
petty offense - correct-answer-In criminal law, the least serious kind of wrong,
such as a traffic or building-code violation.
plain-meaning rule - correct-answer-A rule of statutory interpretation. If the
meaning of a statute is clear on its face, then that is the interpretation the court
will give to it; inquiry into the legislative history of the statute will not be
undertaken.
plaintiff - correct-answer-A party who initiates a lawsuit.
plea bargaining - correct-answer-The process by which the accused and the
prosecutor in a criminal case work out a mutually satisfactory disposition of the
Nc Paralegal Certification Exam 2025
Certified Q&A
paralegal (or legal assistant) - correct-answer-A person qualified by education,
training, or work experience who is employed or retained by a lawyer, law office,
corporation, governmental agency, or other entity who performs specifically
delegated substantive legal work, for which a lawyer is responsible.
parallel citation - correct-answer-A second (or third) citation for a given case.
When a case is published in more than one reporter, each citation is a parallel
citation to the other(s).
parole evidence rule - correct-answer-Agreement between two parties, creating
an enforceable obligation to do, or to refrain from doing, a particular thing. (I
thought this had to do with what evidence you can and can't bring in breach of
contract disputes when they're arguing the terms of the contract...)
partner - correct-answer-A person who has undertaken to operate a business
jointly with one or more other persons. Each partner is a co-owner of the business
firm.
,2|Page
partnership - correct-answer-An association of two or more persons to carry on as
co-owners a business for profit.
party - correct-answer-With respect to lawsuits, the plaintiff or the defendant.
Some cases involve multiple parties (more than one plaintiff or defendant).
passive listening - correct-answer-The act of listening attentively to the speaker's
message and responding to the speaker by providing verbal or nonverbal cues
that encourage the speaker to continue; in effect, saying "I'm listening, please go
on."
patent - correct-answer-A government grant that gives an inventor the exclusive
right or privilege to make, use, or sell that invention for a limited time period.
(HOW LONG?)
paternity suit - correct-answer-A lawsuit brought by an unmarried mother to
establish that a certain male is the biological father of her child. DNA testing or a
comparable procedure is often used to determine paternity.
,3|Page
peremptory challenge - correct-answer-A voir dire challenge to exclude a
potential juror from serving on the jury without any supporting reason or cause.
Peremptory challenges based on racial or gender criteria are illegal.
performance - correct-answer-In contract law, the fulfillment of one's duties
arising under a contract with another; the normal way of discharging one's
contractual obligations.
personal liability - correct-answer-An individual's personal responsibility for debts
or obligations. The owners of sole proprietorships and partnerships are personally
liable for the debts and obligations incurred by their business firms. If their firms
go bankrupt or cannot meet debts as they become due, the owners will be
personally responsible for paying the debts.
personal property - correct-answer-Any property that is not real property.
Generally any property that is movable or intangible is classified as personal
property.
personal representative - correct-answer-A person who manages the financial
affairs of another person who is unable to do so.
, 4|Page
persuasive authority - correct-answer-Any legal authority, or source of law, that a
court may look to for guidance but on which it need not rely in making its
decision. Persuasive authorities include cases from other jurisdictions or
secondary sources of law, such as scholarly treatises.
petition for divorce - correct-answer-The document filed with the court to initiate
divorce proceedings. The requirements governing the form and content of a
divorce petition very from state to state.
petty offense - correct-answer-In criminal law, the least serious kind of wrong,
such as a traffic or building-code violation.
plain-meaning rule - correct-answer-A rule of statutory interpretation. If the
meaning of a statute is clear on its face, then that is the interpretation the court
will give to it; inquiry into the legislative history of the statute will not be
undertaken.
plaintiff - correct-answer-A party who initiates a lawsuit.
plea bargaining - correct-answer-The process by which the accused and the
prosecutor in a criminal case work out a mutually satisfactory disposition of the
