On Wednesday, August 29, 2012, Kanawha Valley and Community and Technical College (KVCTC) welcomed Family Court Judge William Watkins as a guest speaker to KVCTC’s Civil Law 1 class. The Civil Law 1 class is part of KVCTC’s Paralegal Studies Program. It is offered in the evening so that both traditional and well as non-traditional students can attend.
Judge Watkins is a former member of the United States Marine Corps and he has served as a Family Court Judge and/or a Family Law Master for the last nine years in Putnam County. Judge Watkins also has an extensive private law practice background in the area of family law. During his presentation, Judge Watkins discussed with the class various types of topics that his court usually addresses including child custody, divorce, alimony, separation, child support, domestic abuse and neglect issues, and domestic violence issues. Judge Watkins also addressed the impact of parental counseling, the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA) and the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA) upon West Virginia’ s family court system.
Judge Watkins has one of the largest caseloads of any Family Court judge in the state of West Virginia and has had experience in dealing with a number of different unique issues as a result of cases that have come before his court.
KVCTC’s Civil Law 1 class is one of several classes that are offered as part of the college’s very affordable Paralegal Studies degree. Students who take and complete the Introduction to Law course, along with other courses found in the Paralegal Studies curriculum, position themselves for careers in the public and private legal industry following their graduation from KVCTC. KVCTC Paralegal Studies graduates end up working in areas involving both civil law and criminal law following their graduation, with alumni continuing their education to pursue a legal degree.
The KVCTC Paralegal Studies program is located in South Charleston, West Virginia in building 2000 on the campus of the former Dow / Union Carbide technical park. For more information about the KVCTC Paralegal Studies program, please visit KVCTC’s website at www.kvctc.edu or contact the KVCTC Office of Student Services at admissions@kvctc.edu.
