The National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA) and LexisNexis Document Solutions Inc., is pleased to announce the selection of Kimberly A. Underwood, RP, as the 2003 NFPA Paralegal of the Year. LexisNexis Document Solutions Inc., sponsors the award annually to recognize a paralegal who excels in his or her profession and has expanded his or her role and responsibilities, all to the enhancement of the paralegal's personal career, the employer's goals, and the paralegal profession. The award was presented to Underwood at the NFPA annual convention in Newport, Rhode Island, by a representative of LexisNexis Document Solutions Inc., which underwrote Underwood's travel and registration expenses to attend the convention.

Underwood works for the Kentucky Employers Mutual Insurance Company (KEMI) in Lexington, a company created by acts of the state legislature to provide workers' compensation insurance within the state. She was KEMI's first paralegal, joining the team in 1999. Since then, she has expanded her role from collections and case management to a variety of substantive tasks including bankruptcy, subrogation and fraud investigation, legal research, coordination with outside counsel, and drafting of company policies and procedures.

Underwood, who earned her Registered Paralegal status in 2002, frequently speaks to paralegal students and encourages them to seek positions in nontraditional settings. She serves on the board of directors of the statewide Kentucky Paralegal Association and her local group, the Greater Lexington Paralegal Association. She is also a director of Virginia Place-One Parent Family, which assists single parents in obtaining education and becoming self-sufficient