All About CLE for New York Lawyers
Continuing Legal Education (CLE) for New York state attorneys involves a minimum number of hours that must be completed every two years. This means that attorneys will have to take continuing legal education courses to make sure they are up to date with the latest developments in the legal system and in their area of practice. It also gives them an opportunity to pick up new skills that may improve their practice at their firm or increase their knowledge of particular areas of the law. CLE is valuable not only to the attorney, but to his or her firm and to the legal profession as a whole.
A calendar year is the maximum time allowed between compliance periods. The compliance period is the two-year period that runs from January 1 to December 31 every two years, and during which attorneys must complete continuing legal education credits . For example, if you were required to complete 24 credits by December 31, 2016, the next deadline would be December 31, 2018 to maintain compliance for your third compliance period.
As for which continuing legal education courses must take the form of live seminars, attorneys in New York are required to take at least half of the 24 hours through in-person learning. The only exception to this is for those who are newly admitted within the last two years. Those who are newly admitted in August through December of any year must complete 16 total CLE hours, including at least 3 Skills credits or 6 Ethics credits, if applicable, and may complete all 16 hours in any format (including self-study).
NY CLE is meant to ensure that attorneys keep their skills sharp and stay informed about the various dimensions of the law. Although attorneys are already highly educated individuals, it’s wise for both the attorney and clients to know that they are up to date with the changes in the legal code.
NYS General CLE Requirements
Attorneys must obtain 24 NY CLE credits every two years in order to maintain their licenses to practice. These must include the following: The Basic Area of Professional Practice (4 credits) One hour of the 4 hours of specialized Professional Practice CLE credit must be in Ethics. Either 5 credit hours in Areas of Professional Practice or 1 credit hour is allowed in Ethics. A maximum of 6 credits (may include Skills) from programs focused on Law Practice Management and/or Law Practice Management and Technology (of which the 6 credits may include up to 3 credits in Technology). A maximum of 10 credits (may include Ethics) is permitted by programs addressing skills and techniques. A maximum of 12 credit hours is allowed in Professional Practice. The remaining 12 credits can be in either Areas of Professional Practice or Law Practice Management and/or Law Practice Management and Technology.
NY CLE Requirements: Reporting and Deadlines
An attorney’s obligation to complete CLE is more than just a deadline. The NYS CLE Board first established minimum CLE requirements for individual attorneys in 1965 and has increased them over time. The New York regulations do not directly identify a specific due date for CLE completion, but rather state that an attorney must complete the required CLE credit hours within each two-year CLE reporting period. While other states give their attorneys a calendar year or a date to complete the CLE credits by, New York has divided its attorneys into different reporting cycles between a month’s difference. Attorneys with last names A-G on or before July 31st and H-N on or before January 31st of the next year, and attorneys with last names O-Z on or before January 1st of the following year. At the end of each reporting period each attorney must report the credit earned directly to the NYS CLE Board. There is no extension for reporting and while some credit may carry over to the next reporting period, attorneys must stay on top of their deadlines for CLE.
CLE Program Formats for Attorneys
A variety of program formats and types are acceptable to fulfill the NY CLE requirements. These include:
• In-person attendance at a CLE program where a qualified speaker gives a presentation, including live webcasts and interactive workshops;
• Participation in a self-study program; and
• Teaching CLE programs or writing published papers on accepted topics.
However, the NYCLE Board is a little more stringent when it comes to acceptable content for experienced attorneys. When you have reached the 16th credit hour, the requirements shift to make diversity, inclusion, and elimination of bias training mandatory. 5.5 credits of the 24-hour requirement must come from this category before the 32 hours total is reached.
Extensions and Exemptions from Getting CLEs
Attorneys who qualify as members of certain groups may be exempt from the CLE requirement, including attorneys who are:
- 60 years of age as of the date of admission to the bar;
- Retired from the practice of law;
- No longer able to practice law due to physical or mental condition or impairment;
- Domiciled outside the state of NY and performing no legal work in NY (note: must submit the Application for Exemption);
- Serving on active military duty; or
- An attorney for an agency, board or office of NY State or a municipal corporation or other subdivision of the state.
In addition, attorneys serving on active military duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States Duty Uniformed Services of the United States or Title 10 U.S. Code active components of the United States Merchant Marine, or who accompany either of those services as civilian personnel, are specifically exempt from the CLE requirement under Section 15(a) of the Court Interpreters and Legal Resource Act (Sections 118(3) and 146-a of the State Finance Law), Chapter 44 of the Laws of 2007 .
If an attorney does not attend (or complete) enough CLE courses in any three-year reporting biennium to meet the minimum requirement, it will be necessary to remedy the deficiency through the completion of CLE credits in succeeding years.
Exceptions, however, can be made for extenuating circumstances. A waiver extension may be granted for both attorneys and newly admitted Attorneys from another jurisdiction (with a full CLE requirement for the current reporting period in that jurisdiction) who are unable to complete their CLE due to serious illness or disability, undue hardship, or unemployment.
The Application for Waiver or Extension Request Form is available online at www.nycourts.gov/rules/clereg fees apply. In the event of a serious illness, supporting documentation by a qualified medical provider is required.
Nothing reassures clients (and the public) like a lawyer who is up-to-date on the law and the legal field. This is the reason CLE requirements are in place.
Penalties for Failure to Meet CLEs
Failure to comply with CLE requirements can have serious consequences for New York attorneys. If you miss the September 30 deadline, you will face a $100 penalty for each credit hour missed. Additionally, there are administrative penalties. One may be suspended from practice for failure to comply. Suspension may be for an indefinite length of time and until the attorney has complied with the CLE requirements. The New York State Supreme Court may also impose disciplinary measures. In short, CLE requirements are important. Failure to comply can become a major issue if the matter is communicated to the State Supreme Court.
Completing Legal Education Credits: Free Resources
New York attorneys can find eligible CLE credits through both local and accredited out-of-state providers. The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) offers a broad selection of in-person and online programs, covering a variety of practice areas and topics. In addition, bar associations in every state—including California, Florida, and Texas—offer a range of accredited programs. While in-person courses are typically offered throughout the year and course schedules are based on the calendar year, other formats—such as video recordings—are available year round.
Credit may also be earned through verifiable presentation of law-related professional education programs attended as part of a full-time employment. Attorneys may also receive credit for teaching, presenting, or participating in certain law-related educational programs or serving as evaluators of CLE programs.
In addition to traditional CLE programs, the Section of Continuing Legal Education on Administrative Justice (CLEAJ) offers a variety of free professional development and distance learning opportunities that count toward NY Attorney CLE. These programs focus on legal administrative issues, covering topics such as technology, outreach, and examinations.
Common Tips for Managing CLEs
With the clock ticking down to the next compliance period for NY CLE requirements, many attorneys will scramble at the last minute to make sure they fulfill their requirements by 11:59 PM on April 30, 2019. To assist New York attorneys with this last-minute rush, we’ve compiled some of the best tips to make the most efficient use of your time while checking off your CLE credits from the rapidly dwindling list of live and on-demand seminars available for the April 30 deadline.
1. Read the rules before you start
When in need of specific information, the first place for attorneys to go is the NY MCLE Board website. There you can access both the MCLE requirements as well as an online video tutorial that will help you clarify any uncertainties and explain how to search on the CLE Board site. The site also links to the NY MCLE Board’s interactive compliance overview, which can help you better understand your specific compliance needs.
2. Keep track of time
A common reason attorneys find themselves rushing to complete their CLE requirements is the simple failure to stay aware of the time. Marking periods when you should be completing or working on your CLE requirements will help keep you organized.
3. Use technology to your advantage
The good news is that technology has simplified CLE completion, allowing you to manage your own schedule and build CLE credits in any way you please to suit your own taste and style. Streaming videos are available 24/7 , and you can organize your learning in any way that suits your schedule. Plus, there are no time limits, so you can finish a bit now, and a bit later if need be. Live, in-person courses allow you to get immediate clarification on specific topics, and presenters are often available to answer your questions and provide one-on-one interaction at the end of the sessions. Therefore, with the plethora of technology available, you can receive better quality legal education throughout the year and not just during this rush time.
4. Diversify your learning
As noted previously, technology allows you to augment your pure lecture-based learning with webinars and interactivity as well as the option to listen to CLE audio programs while commuting to work or exercising.
5. Do smaller sections at a time
Instead of putting your entire confidence into a single live seminar, or dedicating an entire Saturday or Sunday to online CLE, break your time down into smaller sections. Over two months, the average attorney only needs to schedule approximately two hours of MCLE credit per week to meet the 24-hour requirement. In fact, over a daily, two-week period, an attorney must spend only 3.42 hours of time to complete all 24 hours of CLE. This means that you only need to attend a single hour-long seminar per week for a total of four weeks to fulfill the 12 hours of ethics/professionalism/skills credits and a bit more than five hours each week for the remaining general credits in order to complete the required courses by the deadline.