PARALEGAL 101 EXAM SCRIPT FINAL PAPER
FULL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 2026
◉ Bail
Answer: Money or something else of value that is held by the
government to ensure the defendant's appearance in court.
◉ Personal recognizance bond
Answer: A defendant's personal promise to appear in court.
◉ Grand jury
Answer: A group of people, usually 23, whose function is to
determine if probable cause exists to believe that a crime has been
committed and that the defendant committed it.
◉ Indictment
Answer: A grand jury's written accusation that a given individual has
committed a crime.
◉ Information
Answer: A prosecutor's written accusation that a given individual
has committed a crime.
,◉ Arraignment
Answer: A criminal proceeding at which the court informs the
defendant of the charges being brought against him or her and the
defendant enters a plea.
◉ Plea bargaining
Answer: A process whereby the prosecutor and the defendant's
attorney agree for the defendant to plead guilty in exchange for the
prosecutor's promise to charge him or her with a lesser offense,
drop some additional charges, or request a lesser sentence.
◉ Nolo contendere
Answer: A defendant's plea meaning that the defendant neither
admits nor denies the charges.
◉ Inculpatory evidence
Answer: Evidence that suggests the defendant's guilt.
◉ Exculpatory evidence
Answer: Evidence that suggests the defendant's innocence.
◉ Motion to suppress
,Answer: A request that the court prohibit the use of certain evidence
at the trial.
◉ Exclusionary rule
Answer: A rule that states that evidence obtained in violation of an
individual's constitutional rights cannot be used against that
individual in a criminal trial.
◉ Fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine
Answer: Evidence that is derived from an illegal search or
interrogation is inadmissible.
◉ Motion to require a finding of not guilty
Answer: The defense's request that the court find the prosecution
failed to meet its burden and that it remove the case from the jury by
finding the defendant not guilty.
◉ Charging the jury
Answer: The judge informs the jurors of the law they need to know
to make their decision.
◉ Recidivist
Answer: A repeat offender; one who continues to commit more
crimes.
, ◉ Writ of habeas corpus
Answer: A request that the court release the defendant because of
the illegality of the incarceration.
◉ Legal Research
Answer: The process of finding the law.
◉ Legal Reasoning
Answer: The application of legal rules to a client's specific factual
situation; also known as legal analysis.
◉ Legal writing
Answer: Examples of legal writing include case briefs, law office
memoranda, and documents filed with the court.
◉ Paralegal
Answer: A person who assists an attorney and, working under the
attorney's supervision, does tasks that, absent the paralegal, the
attorney would do. A paralegal cannot give advice or appear in court.
◉ American Bar Association (ABA)
FULL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 2026
◉ Bail
Answer: Money or something else of value that is held by the
government to ensure the defendant's appearance in court.
◉ Personal recognizance bond
Answer: A defendant's personal promise to appear in court.
◉ Grand jury
Answer: A group of people, usually 23, whose function is to
determine if probable cause exists to believe that a crime has been
committed and that the defendant committed it.
◉ Indictment
Answer: A grand jury's written accusation that a given individual has
committed a crime.
◉ Information
Answer: A prosecutor's written accusation that a given individual
has committed a crime.
,◉ Arraignment
Answer: A criminal proceeding at which the court informs the
defendant of the charges being brought against him or her and the
defendant enters a plea.
◉ Plea bargaining
Answer: A process whereby the prosecutor and the defendant's
attorney agree for the defendant to plead guilty in exchange for the
prosecutor's promise to charge him or her with a lesser offense,
drop some additional charges, or request a lesser sentence.
◉ Nolo contendere
Answer: A defendant's plea meaning that the defendant neither
admits nor denies the charges.
◉ Inculpatory evidence
Answer: Evidence that suggests the defendant's guilt.
◉ Exculpatory evidence
Answer: Evidence that suggests the defendant's innocence.
◉ Motion to suppress
,Answer: A request that the court prohibit the use of certain evidence
at the trial.
◉ Exclusionary rule
Answer: A rule that states that evidence obtained in violation of an
individual's constitutional rights cannot be used against that
individual in a criminal trial.
◉ Fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine
Answer: Evidence that is derived from an illegal search or
interrogation is inadmissible.
◉ Motion to require a finding of not guilty
Answer: The defense's request that the court find the prosecution
failed to meet its burden and that it remove the case from the jury by
finding the defendant not guilty.
◉ Charging the jury
Answer: The judge informs the jurors of the law they need to know
to make their decision.
◉ Recidivist
Answer: A repeat offender; one who continues to commit more
crimes.
, ◉ Writ of habeas corpus
Answer: A request that the court release the defendant because of
the illegality of the incarceration.
◉ Legal Research
Answer: The process of finding the law.
◉ Legal Reasoning
Answer: The application of legal rules to a client's specific factual
situation; also known as legal analysis.
◉ Legal writing
Answer: Examples of legal writing include case briefs, law office
memoranda, and documents filed with the court.
◉ Paralegal
Answer: A person who assists an attorney and, working under the
attorney's supervision, does tasks that, absent the paralegal, the
attorney would do. A paralegal cannot give advice or appear in court.
◉ American Bar Association (ABA)
