Can You Receive CLE Credit for an In-House Legal Writing Seminar?
In many states, MCLE rules allow participants to receive CLE credit for an in-house legal writing seminar. This chart sets out each state's rules, with contact information and links for each state's MCLE web site. If you have any questions, contact your state's MCLE office.
States from A-M, page 1 | States from N-Z, below.
NE | NV | NH | NJ | NM | NY | NC | ND | OH | OK | OR |
PA
RI | SC | SD | TN | TX | UT | VT | VA | WA | WV | WI | WY
State MCLE Contact Info |
Credit for In-House Seminar? / Provisions |
|---|---|
NEBRASKANebraska MCLE Commission |
Yes. Approval required. Must apply at least 10 days in advance. Applications accepted from the online system only. To submit your application online, you need a sponsor-user account on Nebraska MCLE Online. Contact the Commission to request a sponsor-user account Up to 5 hours of the 10 CLE hours required yearly may be obtained from approved in-house CLE programs. In-house activity are given by, for, or to a select private audience, such as a law firm, corporation, government agency, or governmental entity, not open for admission to other members of the legal community generally. 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2010 |
NEVADANevada Board of CLE |
Yes. Approval required. Must apply at least 30 days in advance (60 days in advance if not an in-house program). Required: Open to monitoring by the Board or its representative. An individual member of the bar desiring approval of a course must apply no later than 60 days following the course. Application for Course Approval available for download on the CLE website for the State of Nevada. 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated June 2011 |
NEW HAMPSHIRENew Hampshire MCLE Board |
Yes. Approval required. Must apply in advance or within 30 days after the seminar. Required: Minimum attendance of 3 lawyers, including the instructor. Maximum of 6 credit hours per year (of the 12 MCLE hours required yearly). Attorney Credit Application Form 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated June 2009 |
NEW JERSEYBoard on CLE |
Yes. Approval required. Must apply 30 days in advance or within 30 days after the course is presented. Except for the courses required for newly admitted lawyers, all active lawyers will receive 1:1 credit for courses approved as satisfying the CLE requirements of any other jurisdiction. Half of the required credits must be earned from attendance at live courses with the instructor physically in the same room as participants. Providers must apply for course approval using the on-line computer tracking system. Existing Provder Login 50 min. = 1 Credit Hour Updated September 2012 |
NEW MEXICONew Mexico MCLE Board |
Yes. Approval required. Should apply at least 30 days prior to the seminar. In-house programs may be approved for MCLE credit under the rules and regulations applicable to any other sponsor. Rules require that faculty include at least one lawyer, judge, or full-time law professor. Attorney Individual Application Form 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2009 |
NEW YORKNew York State CLE Board |
Yes. Approval required unless sponsor is an accredited provider or program has been granted hybrid accreditation by the CLE Board. LawWriting.com has been granted hybrid accreditation for its writing skills workshops. 50 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated June 2011 |
NORTH CAROLINANorth Carolina Continuing Legal Education Department |
Yes. Approval required. Non-accredited sponsor should apply at least 45 days prior to program; accredited sponsor should apply at least 30 days prior to program. A CLE program offered by a sponsor to a law firm will be approved for CLE credit if the program is open to any interested attorney from outside the law firm. The program may be advertised to the wider legal community by placing a notice in the local courthouse or legal journal at least 10 days in advance. The firm may also invite outside attorneys to attend. Failure to make the program available to outside attorneys will result in denial of CLE credit. The CLE Department may request proof of outside attendance for any law firm program. The Department may exempt from these requirements those programs that it finds “to be conducted by public or quasi-public organizations or associations for the education of their employees or members.” Must be open to official observers. Attorney Application for CLE Credit 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2009 |
NORTH DAKOTANorth Dakota
Commission for CLE |
Yes. Approval required. Required: either (a) outside speakers present the session or (b) the session is advertised and open to the general bar membership. Attorney Application for CLE Credit 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2012 |
OHIOCommission
on CLE
|
Yes. Approval required. Must apply 60 days in advance for Ohio programs ($100 fee for late applications). Required: (1) outside faculty (one or more speakers); and (2) open to outside attorneys (25% of available seating made available to outside attendees). Clients are not considered outside attendees. You may apply for a variance from one of these requirements, but not both. Program must be open to official observer. No credit for presentations concurrent with the consumption of a meal. Maximum of 12 credit hours per biennial reporting period. In-house programs are called “Special Programs”. 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated June 2009 |
OKLAHOMAMCLE Commission |
Yes. Prior approval required. Applications must be received 45 days in advance. Required: 50% of instructional time presented by outside faculty; if space is available, the seminar must be publicized and there must be reasonable opportunity for outside lawyers to attend. MCLE forms, including Request for Approval of Live In-House CLE Activity and Uniform Application for Accreditation of CLE available for download on Oklahoma Bar website 50 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated February 2011 |
OREGONOregon
State Bar MCLE |
Yes. Approval required. Must apply before or not more than 30 days after seminar ($40 fee for late applications). Required: Open to official audit. 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour** Updated July 2009 |
PENNSYLVANIAPennsylvania
CLE Board |
Yes. Must be approved. Should apply prior to the seminar if possible. Retroactive application must be made within two years. Required: Outside publicity; open to “all lawyers thought to be interested in the subject matter.” Note: The Regulations state that “In-house activities will not be approved for CLE credit,” but “in-house activity” is defined as an educational activity with an “attendance restriction on lawyers . . . not affiliated with the law firm or corporation.” 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2009 |
RHODE ISLANDRhode Island
MCLE Commission |
Yes. Approval required. Commission must be notified 30 days in advance. Required: Open to in-person monitoring by a Commission member; scheduled at a time and location free of interruptions from phone calls and other office activity. Maximum of 5 credit hours of the 10 CLE hours required yearly. 50 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated June 2009 |
SOUTH CAROLINACommission
on CLE and Specialization |
Yes. Prior approval required. Must apply on or before seminar. Courses must be submitted for approval on a course-by-course rather than an approved-sponsor basis. Required: All written materials must be filed with application; minimum attendance of 5 lawyers, not including instructors. Not more than one-half of an attorney’s approved credits for any reporting period can be earned through in-house programs. These requirements and limitations do not apply to public/governmental entities. 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2009 |
SOUTH DAKOTA
|
No Mandatory CLE. Updated July 2012 |
TENNESSEETennessee Comm. on
CLE & Specialization |
Yes. Approval required. Apply at least 45 days in advance of the program. Required: Law firm sponsored programs must be open “in some significant manner to a broad spectrum of the bar either in a geographical area or in the field of practice.” Programs limited to in-house counsel for clients will not be accredited. Governmental departments may offer in-house programs if they are open to all department attorneys in the state and if at least 50% of the approved hours are taught by persons with no continuing relationship or employment with the department. Request for Credits Earned Out of State, Online or Other Unpaid Credits 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2009 |
TEXASMCLE Department |
Yes. Prior approval required. Must apply at least 30 days prior to the program. Required: “efforts should be made to achieve a balance of in-house and outside instructors”); open to official observers; must be scheduled at a time and location so as to be free of interruptions from telephone calls and other office matters. Attendance at non-accredited in-house programs can be claimed as self-study credits. A maximum of 5 self-study credit hours (of the 15 credit hours required yearly) can be applied toward each MCLE compliance year. As of June 1, 2011, the maximum allowed for self-study credit is 3 credit hours. Application for Approval 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated August 2010 |
UTAHUtah
State Board of CLE |
Yes. Approval required. Must apply within sixty days prior to or following the seminar. Required: The seminar must be made available to lawyers throughout the state unless the sponsor demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Board that there is good reason to limit availability. The seminar must be open to official observers. Attorney Individual Application Form 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2009 |
VERMONTBoard of Continuing Legal EducationSuite 2 2418 Airport Road Barre, VT 05641 802-828-3281 802-828-1695 (Fax) jud-attylicensing@state.vt.us |
Yes. Prior approval required. Required: Minimum attendance of 3 lawyers. 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated October 2010 |
VIRGINIAContinuing Legal Education
Board |
Yes. Approval required. 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Required: Must have the primary objective of increasing an attendee's professional competence and skills as an attorney; must accurately report the audience for each program, including the number of firm attorneys, attorney clients or potential clients, and non-attorneys. See MCLE Opinion 18. Application for MCLE Course Approval (Law Firm Application - Form 4) available for downloading here. Attorney Individual Application Form Updated July 2012 |
WASHINGTONWashington
MCLE Board |
Yes. Approval required. Must apply at least 14 days prior to course. Failure to do so may result in a late fee or denial of accreditation or both. Required: Private law firms, corporate legal departments, and government entities must register as the sponsor of a course if they present the course or contract with an outside CLE provider to present it. The course must be open to audit by the MCLE Board or its designees at no charge. If the course is sponsored by a private law firm, no client, former client, or prospective client of the firm may directly or indirectly pay for or underwrite the course, in whole or in part. Application for Approval Updated August 2010 |
WEST VIRGINIAWest
Virginia CLE Commission
|
Yes. Prior approval required. Must apply at least 30 days before seminar. Approved on a course-by-course basis rather than an accredited-provider basis. Required: Written outline or written materials must be submitted with application and distributed at course; open to official observers; scheduled at a time and location so as to be free of interruptions from telephone calls and other office matters. Maximum credits earned by in-house programs, video, audio, correspondence, telephone seminars, and computer-based training not to exceed half of MCLE requirements (12 of the 24 hours required every 2 years). Attorney Individual Application Form 50 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated October 2010 |
WISCONSINBoard
of Bar Examiners |
Yes. Approval required. Required: Attended by at least 2 attendees and moderator. No CLE activity offered in conjunction with a meal will be approved unless the meal portion is allocated no less than 30 minutes and the education portion occupies a separate period lasting at least 50 minutes. Only under unusual circumstances will credit in excess of 1 hour be extended to a CLE activity offered in conjunction with a meal. 50 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated July 2009 |
WYOMINGWyoming State Board of CLEWyoming State Bar PO Box 109 Cheyenne, WY 82003-0109 307-632-9061 307-632-3737 (Fax) Marie Ellis, CLE Director mellis@wyomingbar.org |
Yes. Approval required. Must apply at least 30 days prior to seminar. Wyoming attorneys are required to submit Applications for CLE Credit for each program they attend. Attorney Application for CLE Credit 60 min. = 1 Credit Hour* Updated October 2011
|
* In most states, introductions, welcoming remarks, breaks, and meal time are not included; some states permit credit or partial credit for a program held during a meal if the program is substantive in nature.
** In Oregon, breaks exceeding 15 minutes per 3 hours of instruction are excluded in computed credit hours.
About Marilyn | Workshops | Coaching | Clients | Testimonials
FAQs | Working with Marilyn | Resources | Contact
Marilyn | Home
© Marilyn Bush LeLeiko, 2003 | Good Karma Host | Sitemap