Gina's CLE Blog

No Mandatory CLE in Connecticut for at Least One More Year

Last Thursday, the Connecticut Superior Court Rules Committee heard testimony from several attorneys, including CBA President-elect Barry Hawkins and New Haven County Bar President Irene Jacobs, regarding a proposal requiring lawyers to complete at least 36 hours of CLE every three years. The proposal, endorsed by the CBA's House of Delegates, has created a deep division within the bar.

Testimony included information from Jacobs (who spoke against the proposal) that New Jersey, the most recent state to adopt MCLE requirements, found that the costs of implementing the program were higher than anticipated. The costs were not covered by the annual $4 per lawyer assessment and the bar borrowed money from the New Jersey Judicial Branch to fund the start-up.

Stating its own concerns about the costs of the program, the Rules Committee then voted to table the proposal. The move essentially puts the mandatory requirement on hold for at least a year.

The Rules Committee has also decided to ask Chief Justice Chase T. Rogers to form a committee of judges to evaluate the administrative challenges and other burdens that may be born if a mandatory requirement is implemented.

Good News - Most Attorneys ARE Meeting their MCLE Requirements!

I recently received an inquiry from a law firm CLE coordinator looking for any statistics available related to the rate of attorneys who comply with the MCLE regulations in a timely manner. After searching through my reference materials and sources, I could find no reports of this number.

As I, too, was curious and though that this would be interesting information to have, I surveyed my contacts at the state regulatory authorities to find out if they were tracking this data, and what were their results.

I asked the regulators:

• What percentage of attorneys are fully compliant with the rules (meet the credit and date requirement),
• How many meet the requirement within the late period, and
• How many are non-compliant (do not meet the requirement)? – The penalty is usually administrative suspension to practice law.

I quickly received responses from about half of the regulators, and found out that many state regulators do not have easy access to this information. There were also four states (Alaska, California, Colorado, and Illinois) where the information is confidential by statute. Of the remaining states, the overwhelming majority show that attorneys are relatively good at complying – just not always on time.

On average:

• 89.8% of attorneys are compliant with the regulations by the end of compliance period. This number is significantly lower when there is a “grace-period” offered (no late fees assessed) – only 73% of attorneys are compliant in states with this grace period available.
• Of those attorneys who are in the late period, the majority of these do come into compliance. On average the states have a 0.9% non-compliance rate – these are attorneys who are suspended due to non-compliance. Generally they are administratively suspended from the practice of law and can remedy and pay a reinstatement fee to become active again.

I will let you know if the numbers change significantly with more responses from the states, but I feel fairly confident that these numbers will hold true across all of the MCLE jurisdictions as they’ve been fairly consistent across the data I’ve received to date.

Thank you to Michea for prompting me to ask the questions!

West LegalEdcenter is Hiring!

Exciting news for me and my team - West LegalEdcenter is hiring two new additional staff!

Positions available are:

Accreditation Administrator: (http://jobs.thomsonreuters.com/job/Eagan-Accreditation-Administrator-Job-MN-55120/1765760/)

The Accreditation Administrator will ensure that all events of the business are accredited (as applicable), and complete applications, attendance, certificates and other required documentation for department. Accountability for accreditation customer service including email, voicemail, and direct customer inquiries.

Major Areas of Accountability include: Prepare state accreditation applications for all business events as directed. Coordinate payment of fees, track state approvals, report attendance for accredited events. Prepare and distribute attendance certificates to attendees of approved programs; Assist with day-of event procedures and ensure requirements are enforced; Research and respond to all customer inquiries within department goals and guidelines; and Other administrative assistance to West Professional Development department as needed.

Attorney Accreditation Specialist: (http://jobs.thomsonreuters.com/job/Eagan-Accreditation-Specialist-Job-MN-55120/1765744/)

The Attorney Accreditation Specialist will work closely with state Legal Education and Specialty Certification bodies in order to gather state requirements, ensure that all events of the business are accredited (as applicable), collaborate with content teams on the accreditation of all events, and coordinate accreditation administrative coordinators' workflow for the department.

Major Areas of Accountability include: Responsible for gathering state accreditation requirements from state Legal Education and specialty certification bodies. Analyze state requirements to collaborate with content teams to ensure that events qualify, monitor and manage requirement changes, and coordinate credit for attendees of all events. Work with manager to implement and track additional non-legal accreditation verticals; Manage relationships with certification bodies, including reviewing and maintaining current approved provider status in all states which offer this option, communicating WPD guidelines and policies, and providing feedback; Work cross-functionally with content team to ensure accreditation requirements are understood and procedures for event management are properly enforced. Identify potential changes that would ensure course accreditation and develop and implement recommendations on changes; Coordinate workflow of West Professional Development administrative assistants to ensure applications, certificates, attendance, and other reporting deadlines are met; and Respond to escalated accreditation customer service issues.

Both jobs will be located in Eagan, just outside of St Paul, Minnesota. Please let relevant candidates know about the postings! Because wouldn't working with me in CLE be a dream?

Maryland No Closer to MCLE

In an update yesterday from Judge Lynne Battaglia's (Maryland Court of Appeals) chamber, Maryland has moved no closer to requiring its licensed attorneys to complete mandatory continuing legal education programs.

Last year, the Professionalism Commission, set up by the Maryland Court of Appeals, surveyed the bar to determine how attorneys are currently taking CLE, and at what levels. The survey followed a recommendation that a 10-credit mandatory requirement be established for the state. The Commission, headed by Judge Battaglia, then compiled the results for presentation to the Court.

According to Judge Battaglia's assistant, while the recommendation has come before the Court, they considered it but took no action at the time. There is no update as to when it will come before the Court again for further action.