WEST LEGALEDCENTER COVID-19

REGULATORY INFORMATION PROGRAMING AND PREPAREDNESS

 

We understand information changes rapidly related to the Coronavirus pandemic. This page will update you regarding our preparations, regulatory credit changes as we become aware of them, and courses on the site related to COVID-19.

 

 

COVID-19 PROGRAMMING ON WEST LEGALEDCENTER:

 

West LegalEdcenter continues to offer numerous programs related to coronavirus, COVID-19 and its impact on law and legal systems. Please follow the link below for search results on our COVID-19 programming.

 

COVID-19 Programming on West LegalEdcenter

 

 

WLEC PREPAREDNESS:

 

West LegalEdcenter (WLEC) has been diligently evaluating all business operations for readiness preparation related to the COVID-19 pandemic.  We have the capability to work virtually as an enterprise and have fully tested our systems should this emerge as a new requirement.

 

While the availability of our On-Demand library should experience very little change, we do anticipate some volatility in our Live Webcast offerings, as some of these events are captured at the simultaneous public CLE events, and as such are subject to restrictions and cancellations.

 

We will continue to adjust our offerings as necessary to provide quality programming meeting your needs.

 

REGULATORY UPDATES:

 

We have received communications from various regulators modifying their requirements in the face of this challenge, as more in-person CLE is transitioned to or canceled in favor of distance learning formats.  Below is a list of the changes we have identified up to this point. Please consult the regulatory authority with questions or for additional details. We will continue to update this page as we become aware of changes, but the regulators themselves are the final source of information.

 

Delaware

The Supreme Court of the State of Delaware issued an order lifting the requirement that at least 12 of the 24 CLE credit hours must be earned by attending in person, live CLE approved courses. For the two-year periods ending December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2021, all 24 CLE credit hours for those two-year periods may be satisfied by approved courses that do not require an in-person, live appearance.

 

Florida

The Florida Bar issued an order extending CLE reporting deadlines for February, March, April and May 2020 to August 31, 2020. All other annual compliance deadlines remain the same.

 

Georgia

The Supreme Court of Georgia issued an order temporarily waiving the 6 hour in-person CLE requirement until the late CLE deadline on March 31, 2020. Georgia attorneys can now complete their full 12-hour requirement through self-study, in-house or online seminars.

 

Indiana

By order, the Supreme Court of Indiana modified CLE requirements as follows: ��[T]hat the credit-hour limitations on distance education courses � are hereby WAIVED for all attorneys, judges, and State Level Judicial Officers whose three-year Educational Period or Judicial Officer Educational Period ends on December 31, 2020. Those credit-hour limitations are AMENDED for all other attorneys, judges, and State Level Judicial Officers as follows: Judges and attorneys whose educational periods expire on or before December 31, 2022 may obtain no more than 24 hours of distance education; and State Level Judicial Officers whose educational period expires on or before December 31, 2022, may obtain no more than 36 hours by distance education.

 

Iowa

The Iowa Supreme Court has issued an order temporarily waiving the credit limitation for unmoderated courses. Iowa attorneys may complete any portion of their requirement as On Demand courses until further notice from the Iowa Supreme Court.

 

Maine

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court issued an Emergency Order suspending the in-person requirement for Maine Bar Rule 5 CLE programs; programs on recognition and avoidance of harassment and discriminatory communication or conduct related to the practice of law.  Maine attorneys may now complete this credit with live webinars but are still not allowed to take the credit with on demand programming. The Maine Board of the Overseers of the Bar has also extended the 2018/2019 CLE reporting deadline to May 1, 2020. The Board also decided to forgo the imposition of late fees for the 2018/2019 reporting period.

 

Minnesota

The Supreme Court of Minnesota has issued an order temporarily waiving the credit limitation for On Demand courses. Minnesota attorneys in category 3 who are due to report their requirement on August 31, 2020 (for the 2017-2020 reporting year), may complete all of their requirement as On Demand courses.

 

Nebraska

The Nebraska Supreme Court has issued an order temporarily removing the limit to distance learning courses. Attorneys can complete up to ten credits of distance learning for all CLE requirements due on or before January 20, 2021. This includes the 2020 requirement.

 

New Jersey

The Supreme Court of New Jersey issued an order temporarily relaxing the 12-hour live classroom credit requirement. Until further notice from the courts, New Jersey attorneys may fulfill their entire CLE requirement through approved courses offered in alternative verifiable learning formats.

 

New York

The New York CLE Board has issued an order temporarily allowing Newly Admitted Attorneys to complete their live Skills requirement via live webcast, teleconference, and video conference. This change is effective through June 30, 2020.

 

North Carolina

Note: Although North Carolina previously had a live CLE requirement, as of January 1, 2020, that requirement was rescinded. North Carolina attorneys can complete their entire CLE requirement via On Demand programming.

 

North Dakota

The North Dakota CLE Commission has suspended the credit limitation on Self-Study courses for North Dakota attorneys in Reporting Group 3 (attorneys who report in 2020). These attorneys may complete any portion of their requirement as On-Demand courses.

 

Ohio

The Ohio Commission on Continuing Legal Education has waived the self-study cap for the 2018-2019 Late Compliance period and extended the deadline to June 29, 2020. Ohio attorneys who still need to finish their CLE requirements from the 2018-2019 compliance period can do so by watching On-Demand programming.

 

Pennsylvania

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has issued an order extending the CLE deadline for Compliance Group 1 to August 31, 2020 (previously April 30). All other annual compliance deadlines remain the same.

 

South Carolina

The Supreme Court of South Carolina has issued an order stating that all attorneys may complete their 14-hour requirement through online or telephonic programs for the 2019-2020 reporting year, which ends on April 15, 2020.

 

Tennessee

The Tennessee Supreme Court issued an order to allow Tennessee-licensed attorneys to complete all their required hours online for the completion of their 2019 compliance. The order allows attorney through March 31, 2020 to earn all of their credits with live webinar or on demand programming to establish their MCLE compliance for the 2019 compliance year.

 

Texas

The State Bar of Texas has granted the following automatic extensions for their CLE requirement: (1) A 60 day extension for attorneys with March, April, or May 2020 compliance deadlines; (2) A 60 day extension for missed January or February 2020 compliance deadlines, to prevent the assessment of further fees; (3) A one month extension for attorneys subject to suspension for failure to comply with MCLE requirements in November or December 2019.

 

Utah

The Supreme Court Board of Continuing Education issued an order suspending all requirements for the in-person CLE requirement until June 30, 2020. Utah attorneys with a June 30, 2020 deadline can now complete their required hours through webinars and other self-study.

 

West Virginia

The West Virginia Mandatory CLE Commission issued an order suspending the live CLE requirement through June 30, 2020. West Virginia attorneys can now complete their full 24-hour requirement through video, audio, telephone seminars, computer-based training courses, or in-house instruction.

 

Wisconsin

The Supreme Court of Wisconsin issued an order temporarily increasing the number of on-demand CLE credits lawyers can take to satisfy their requirement through December 31, 2020. Attorneys with a December 31, 2020 deadline and those working to make up a deficit from their December 31, 2019 deadline may now take 30 hours of on-demand programming, however, the legal ethics requirement needs be taken via live online programming or in-person courses.

 

(with thanks/credit to colleagues at the U.S. Dept. of Justice, Office of Legal Education)

 

WLEC TRACKER AND COMPLIANCE REPORT BEST PRACTICES:

 

The publicized regulatory changes are expected to be temporary. Our system cannot currently account for these changes directly in its calculations. As a result, the MCLE Compliance Reports may not accurately reflect your compliance standing.

 

Best practice will be to independently track your credits, and use state system(s) as available, since those are the final arbiter of compliance.