Welcome and Requirements
Welcome to the Alabama State Bar! As a member of the bar, you are subject to Alabama’s Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) Rules and Regulations. This memo is intended to provide a checklist for newly admitted attorneys. However, if you feel that you are exempt due to your occupation or otherwise, please refer to the rules and regulations or contact our office.
MCLE Requirements
1. You are exempt until December 31, 2008.
Attorneys are exempt from the MCLE Rules and Regulations throughout the calendar year in which they were admitted. Because you were admitted during 2008, you are exempt from the 12-hour CLE requirement through December 31, 2008.
2. Thereafter, you must earn at least 12 MCLE hours (including 1 hour of ethics) annually.
Beginning in 2008, you will need to earn a minimum of 12 hours of approved CLE credits each year (including 1 hour of ethics). You can find a list of approved seminars on the course search on the Alabama State Bar’s website. This site will list seminars that have been approved for CLE.
3. You must complete the mandatory professionalism course within one year of your admissions..
MCLE Rule 9 also requires new admittees to complete a six (6) hour course in professionalism within one year of your admission. Hours earned at this seminar will count toward your general 12 hour CLE requirement for 2007. This seminar (Alabama’s Mandatory Professionalism Seminar) will be administered by the Alabama Bar Institute for Continuing Legal Education (ABICLE) on even numbered years and Cumberland School of Law on odd numbered years. Upcoming dates will be posted on the course search. To register, contact ABICLE (1-800-627-6514) or Cumberland (1-800-888-7454). Unlike the 12 hour requirement, this course is mandatory regardless of your membership status.
Reporting Your Hours
You will not be required to file a report this year, but if you do earn any approved credits between your admission date and December 31, 2008, and want these credits to carry forward to the next year, then you must report them by January 31, 2009. Beginning in 2009, you must report your hours annually. You can view your CLE transcript (record of reported CLE attendance) on-line at the Member Login within 20 days of attending a CLE class. You will log in using your ASB # and your email address that is on file with membership services. If you find an error on your transcript, notify our office immediately. You will be provided instructions for reporting your CLE hours annually.
If you have any questions regarding CLE Requirements, please call Angela Parks or Carol Thornton in the MCLE Department at 1-334-269-1515.
