State CLE Requirements

Maine Bar Rule 12: Continuing Legal Education

Effective January 1, 2001

All of the Justices concurring therein, the following amendments to the Maine Bar Rules are hereby adopted, prescribed, and promulgated to be effective on January 1, 2001

1. Maine Bar Rule 12 is added to read as follows:

(a) Continuing Legal Education Requirement.

(1) Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, every attorney required to register in accordance with these rules of this state shall complete 11 credit hours of approved continuing legal education in each calendar year beginning January 1, 2001. At least one credit hour in each calendar year shall be primarily concerned with issues of ethics or professional responsibility. If an attorney is subject to this rule for more than 3 months of a calendar year but for less than the entire year, the number of credits required for that year shall be prorated according to the number of full months of the year in which the attorney is subject to this rule.

(2) An attorney who completes more than 11 credit hours in a calendar year may carry forward up to 11 such additional hours to satisfy the requirement of the following year, provided that the professional responsibility requirement of paragraph (1) of this subdivision is satisfied for each calendar year. Any credit hours completed in the calendar year beginning January 1, 2000 may be carried forward to satisfy the requirement of the calendar year beginning January 1, 2001.

(3) The requirement of paragraph (1) of this subdivision may be met only by teaching (as provided in subsection (8)), attending courses or completing any continuing legal education activity entitled to credit as provided in subdivisions (d) and (e) of this rule; provided that no more than one half of the credit hours required in any reporting period may be earned through in-office courses, self-study, or a combination thereof.

(4) An attorney subject to this rule who is a member of the bar of another state and regularly engaged in the practice of law in that state satisfies the requirement of paragraph (1) of this subdivision if the attorney is in compliance with a continuing legal education requirement established by court rule or statute in that state. If the other state does not require the equivalent of at least one credit hour per year in ethics or professional responsibility, the attorney must complete at least one approved credit hour in ethics or professional responsibility in each calendar year.

(5) The following individuals otherwise subject to this rule are exempted from its requirements:

(A) Attorneys in inactive status pursuant to Rule 6(c);

(B) Full-time judges in any state or federal jurisdiction;

(D) Members of the armed forces of the United States on active duty, unless they are practicing law in Maine;

(E) Residents of another country unless they are practicing law in Maine;

(F) Attorneys who have practiced 40 years or more, attained the age of 65 years, and are engaged in less than the full-time practice of law;

(G) In the discretion of the Board, any individual may be exempted from all or part of the requirements of this rule upon a showing of hardship or disability.

(6) An attorney subject to this rule will be exempted from the requirements of paragraph (1) of this subdivision during the year in which the attorney is admitted to the bar of this state and during the following calendar year, if during the year of admission the attorney completes an approved Bridging the Gap program or other practical skills course made available by the Board of Bar Examiners pursuant to Rule 12 of the Maine Bar Admission Rules or approved as provided in subdivisions (d) and (e) of this rule.

(7) Except as provided in paragraphs (8) and (9) of this subdivision, credit is earned for the time of actual participation in an approved course or activity.

(8) An attorney subject to this rule who makes a presentation in an approved course or activity not offered for academic credit by the sponsoring institution will earn two credit hours for every 30 minutes of actual presentation if the attorney has prepared substantial written materials to accompany the presentation. If substantial written materials have not been prepared, the attorney will earn one credit hour for every 30 minutes of actual presentation. An attorney who teaches a regularly scheduled law-related course offered for academic credit at an accredited post secondary educational institution will earn six credit hours under this rule for every hour of academic credit awarded by the institution for the course. An attorney who assists or participates in such a regularly scheduled course will earn one credit hour for every hour of actual participation, up to a maximum of six hours.

(9) An attorney subject to this rule who formally takes for credit or officially audits a regularly scheduled course offered for academic credit at a law school approved by the American Bar Association will earn four credit hours under this rule for every hour of academic credit awarded by the institution for the course, provided that the attorney attends at least 75% of the classes in the course and, if enrolled for academic credit, receives a passing grade.

(b) Reporting Continuing Legal Education Credit.

(1) An attorney subject to this rule shall annually in connection with the filing of the registration statement required by Rule 6(a) report to the Board the course title, date, location, sponsor, and number of credit hours of all courses or other activities taken for credit pursuant to subdivision (a) of this rule during the preceding calendar year, or carried over from a prior year as provided in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a). If a reported course or other activity has not previously been approved in accordance with subdivisions (d) and (e) of this rule, the attorney shall also submit the information required under subdivision (e) to support a request for such approval. An attorney claiming exemption in accordance with paragraphs (4)-(6) of subdivision (a) of this rule shall state the ground of exemption in lieu of reporting the foregoing information.

(2) Bar Counsel on behalf of the Board may at any time ask an attorney to provide documentation supporting any information reported in accordance with paragraph (1) of this subdivision.

(1) Delinquency. Within 30 days after the annual reporting date, the Board shall send a notice of delinquency to each attorney subject to the requirements of this rule who has not reported information demonstrating compliance with, or exemption from, those requirements. Such notice shall be sent by registered or certified mail, restricted delivery, return receipt requested addressed to the office or home address last known to the Board. Within 60 days after the date of the mailing of such notice, the attorney shall take steps necessary to meet the requirements of the rule for the year in question or shall apply for a waiver on the basis of hardship or other good cause. After this 60-day period, the attorney’s failure to report continuing legal education credit sufficient to constitute retroactive compliance with this rule, to provide information warranting an exemption, or to apply for a waiver shall be reported to Bar Counsel for review and processing as appropriate under Rule 7.1.

(d) Courses and Other Activities Entitled to Credit.

(1) All publicly available courses or other publicly available continuing legal education activities offered by the following are deemed automatically approved and entitled to credit for purposes of subdivision (a) of this rule: any national, state or county bar association, American Trial Lawyers’ Association; Maine Prosecutors’ Association; Maine Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; Maine Trial Lawyers Association; Maine or American Civil Liberties Union; National Association of Attorneys General; National Legal Aid and Defenders’ Association; Practicing Law Institute; Probate Judges Assembly; governmental units or agencies; public bar admission, bar registration or discipline, continuing legal education, or similar agencies created by court rule or statute in any state; law schools approved by the American Bar Association; providers affiliated with such an association, agency, or law school; or other organizations approved by the Board.

(2) All courses or other continuing legal education activities sponsored or presented by any other individual or organization are entitled to credit for purposes of subdivision (a) of this rule if the sponsor or the individual course or activity has been approved by the Board in accordance with subdivision (e) of this rule.

(3) The Board may delegate all approval and other functions under this subdivision and subdivision (e) of this rule to Bar Counsel. The Board shall, by regulation, provide for Board review of any decision of Bar Counsel denying approval of any sponsor, individual course, or other continuing legal education activity. The Board’s determination of any such issue shall be final.

(e) Approval Procedure.

(1) Sponsor Approval. A sponsor may be approved by the Board upon submission of evidence establishing to the satisfaction of the Board:

(A) That the sponsor has been approved or accredited by a continuing legal education accrediting authority established by court rule or statute in another state; or

(B) That, during the immediately preceding three years, the sponsor has sponsored at least six separate courses that comply with the requirements for individual course approval under paragraph (2) of this subdivision.

Approval granted pursuant to this paragraph must be renewed every three years by submission of the evidence required in subparagraph (A) or (B). The Board may at any time review the status of a sponsor approved under subparagraph (A) or specific courses offered by a sponsor approved under subparagraph (B) and may revoke approval if the status has changed or the courses offered by the sponsor do not comply with the requirements of paragraph (2) of this subdivision. Requests for approval may be submitted using the Application form contained in the Appendix to these Rules, supplemented by such supporting information as would assist the Board in determining whether the sponsor meets the requirements of this Rule.

(2) Individual Course Approval. The Board may approve individual courses for credit under subdivision (a) of this rule upon written application of a nonapproved sponsor or an attendee. A sponsor that seeks approval of a course must file a request for such approval accompanied by a full description of the course with the Board at least 30 days before the course is to be presented.

An attendee may file such a request at any time up to and including the filing of the annual report under subdivision (b) of this rule for the year for which credit is sought for the course. The Board shall grant the request if the Board is satisfied that the course meets the following criteria:

(A) The course or activity must contribute directly to the professional competence or skills of attorneys, or to their education with respect to their professional or ethical obligations and, where possible, should include a professional responsibility component.

(B) Course leaders or lecturers and the authors of written materials must be persons sufficiently competent to accomplish the educational goals of the course.

The Board may, prior to granting approval, request any sponsor or attendee to submit further information concerning a course, including the brochure describing the course, a description of the method or manner of presentation of course materials, a statement as to the actual date and place of presentation and the number of persons in attendance, and a copy of the course materials.

(3) In-office and Self-study Continuing Legal Education. Courses offered by law firms, either individually or jointly with other law firms, by corporate legal departments, or by similar entities which employ attorneys, if such courses are provided primarily for the education of the sponsor’s members or employees, and group or individual self-study courses involving the use of written materials, audio or video tapes, computers, or other teaching methods and materials may be approved for credit under subdivision (a) of this rule upon submission of evidence establishing to the satisfaction of the Board that:

(A) The course complies with the standards set forth in paragraph (2) of this subdivision;

(B) Experienced lawyers will contribute to the development or teaching of the course;

Information describing the course, activity or program and a request for approval shall be filed by the offering firm or other entity, by an individual attendee or by any other individual seeking approval within the time limits provided in paragraph (2) of this subdivision. Requests for approval may be submitted using the Application form contained in the Appendix to these Rules, supplemented by such supporting information as would assist the Board in determining whether the course, activity or program meets the requirements of this Rule. If a course or a program of self-study consists of listening to or watching the electronic replay of a previously presented continuing legal education program, the Board shall allocate credit hours to the course in the same manner as for a live program. For other courses or self-study activities, the Board shall determine the amount of credit hours on the basis of program content and the likely duration of the activity.

Dated:

Daniel E. Wathen, Chief Justice

Robert W. Clifford

Paul L. Rudman

Howard H. Dana, Jr.

Leigh I. Saufley

Donald G. Alexander

Susan Calkins

Associate Justices

Notes to Maine Bar Rule 12

Rule 12(a)

Rule 12(a)(1) establishes the basic requirement that each registered Maine lawyer must complete 11 approved credit hours of continuing legal education per year. One of the 11 hours must be in ethics or professional responsibility in order to assure that Maine lawyers remain current in an area that is essential to the integrity of the bar and the public’s perception of it. The professional responsibility requirement may be satisfied through participation in a course of activity with substantive subject matter if it is clear that the professional responsibility content of the course is equivalent to a credit hour. What constitutes a "credit hour" is spelled out in Rule 12(a)(7) and (8).

Rule 12(a)(2) is intended to allow flexibility in course selection by permitting an attorney who earns more than 11 credit hours in a year to carry forward up to 11 of the surplus hours to the next year, provided that the professional responsibility requirement is satisfied for each year. Thus, it is feasible for an attorney to attend a single program or combination of programs that awards more than 11 hours without losing part of the benefit of such attendance. The carryover is only for a single year to assure that attorneys are participating in CLE courses and activities of current value.

Rule 12(a)(3) summarizes the activities that are entitled to be counted for credit under Rule 12(a)(1). Any course or other activity presented by an approved sponsor or separately approved at the request of the sponsor or an attending or participating attorney may be counted. The procedure and criteria for approval are found in Rules 12(d) and (e). The restriction that in-office courses and self-study approved under Rule 12(e)(3) may count for no more than half the total required hours is intended to assure that each participating lawyer has the benefit of some exposure to the ideas of other members of the bar through interaction during course participation.

Rules 12(a)(4)-(6) provide certain exemptions from the CLE requirement. A lawyer may take advantage of any of the exemptions by reporting them in the annual report required by Rule 12(b). Under Rule 12(a)(4), a Maine lawyer who practices in another state with a similar CLE requirement is exempted if the lawyer complies with that state’s requirement. The exemption applies regardless of the number of hours required or the reporting period in the other state, provided that Maine’s one-hour professional responsibility requirement is satisfied. Maine lawyers residing and practicing in a state that does not require CLE participation must satisfy the requirement of Rule 12(a).

Rule 12(a)(5) gives blanket exemptions to individuals in certain categories. Under subparagraph (A), inactive attorneys are exempted because they are not deriving economic benefit from the practice of law. An inactive lawyer who reenters practice under Rule 6(d) immediately becomes subject to the requirement of Rule 12(a) for that portion of the year following reentry. Full-time judges are exempted under subparagraph (B) because judges are required to maintain professional competence under Canon 3B(2) of the Maine Code of Judicial Conduct and their participation in continuing judicial education is mandated at a level that exceeds that required by this rule and is monitored as an administrative matter. Full-time law teachers in ABA approved law schools are exempted under subparagraph (C) for administrative convenience because their teaching would automatically satisfy the CLE requirement under Rule 12(a)(8). The exemptions in subparagraph (D) and (E) for lawyers on military active duty or resident in another country reflect the difficulties that such individuals would encounter in finding adequate opportunities to satisfy the requirement. Subparagraph (F) recognizes that many senior lawyers are only nominally engaged in the practice of law. Subparagraph (G) gives the Board discretion to grant hardship and disability exemptions upon a proper showing. Such exemptions will be granted only rarely and where genuinely warranted.

Rule 12(a)(6) is designed to encourage Maine and other states to provide new admittees with opportunities to attend bridging the gap or similar practical skills programs designed to assist new members of the bar to make the transition from law school to practice. A course made available by the Maine Board of Bar Examiners would automatically qualify. Any other such course offered in Maine or another jurisdiction could be approved under Rules 12(d) and (e), like any CLE course.

Rule 12(a)(7) provides that a "credit hour" for purposes of Rule 12 is ordinarily a clock hour of actual course work. The exceptions refer to provisions allotting credit for teaching or for attendance at regular academic courses.

Rule 12(a)(8) provides various measures of credit for teaching, whether in a CLE course or in a regular law school course. Under this rule, an individual who took lead responsibility for both the preparation of materials and the presentation of a one-day CLE course could satisfy the annual requirement in that effort. The rule is designed to provide an easily administered but fair and flexible way of recognizing virtually every level of CLE instructional activity. The portions of paragraph (8) pertaining to regular law school teaching are intended to encourage practitioners to seek and accept part-time law school teaching assignments or to participate on a less formal basis with regular instructors in law school classes. Full-time law teachers are exempted from the requirement of Rule 12(a)(1) by Rule 12(a)(5)(C).

Under Rule 12(a)(9), a lawyer may receive CLE credit for attendance as an auditor or registered student in a regular law school academic course. A normal three credit hour semester course would satisfy the 11 hour CLE requirement of Rule 12(a)(1).

Rule 12(b)

Rule 12(b) provides a simple reporting arrangement for CLE credit. The annual registration statement form will be revised to provide space in which a lawyer may list the courses or activities offered for credit or the facts justifying an exemption. If the course or activity is one offered by a sponsor approved in accordance with Rule 12(d)(1) or Rule 12(e)(1) or has been previously approved pursuant to Rules 12(e)(2)-(3), only the basic facts set forth in Rule 12(b)(1) need be reported. If a sponsor or course has not yet been approved, the lawyer claiming credit for it should provide with the reporting form information sufficient to satisfy the approval criteria of Rule 12(e)(2)-(3) as appropriate. In either case, under Rule 12(b)(2), Bar Counsel may ask for additional documentation or information.

Rule 12(c)

Rule 12(c) provides a mechanism for policing the reporting requirement. If an attorney does not demonstrate compliance with the requirement of Rule 12(a)(1) after appropriate notification, the attorney will be reported to Bar Counsel for review and processing as appropriate under Rule 7.1. Like the failure to file a registration statement under Rule 6(b)(1), the failure to comply with this rule "shall not be considered a violation of the Code of Professional Responsibility per se, and the suspension . . . shall not constitute the imposition of discipline." M. Bar R. 6(b)(1).

Rule 12(d)

Rule 12(d) is the basic provision defining those courses and activities entitled to CLE credit under Rule 12(a)(1). As a matter of convenience for Maine lawyers and the Board and for comity with other jurisdictions, bar associations, public bar agencies, and law schools, and several other known Maine entities are automatically treated as approved sponsors, so that their offerings are entitled to credit under Rule 12(d)(1) without any action on their parts. By virtue of Rule 12(d)(2), any other sponsor, or a separate course or activity offered by any other sponsor, must be approved in accordance with the provisions of Rule 12(e). Rule 12(d)(3) makes explicit what would in any case follow from Rule 5(c) and (e), that the administration of Rule 12(d) and (e) is to be conducted by Bar Counsel and staff, with final Board review of any denial of approval.

Rule 12(e)

Rule 12(e) sets forth the criteria for approval of sponsors and three categories of separate courses and activities. Sponsor approval under Rule 12(e)(1) means that the offerings of an approved sponsor do not have to be individually reviewed and approved by the Board. See Rule 12(d)(2). Thus, the approval criteria require a track record, to be demonstrated either by approval of the sponsor in another state or by performance over the preceding three years. The criteria of Rule 12(e)(2) for separate approval of individual courses offered by a nonapproved sponsor focus on the goals of the course, the quality of its presenters, and the nature of the presentation. Such approval may be requested either by the sponsor in advance of the offering of the program or by the participating lawyer at any time up to the point at which credit is requested. See Rule 12(b)(1).

The criteria of Rule 12(e)(3) for approval of in-office courses and self-study activities incorporate the course approval criteria of paragraph (2), but also impose requirements intended to insure a meaningful learning experience despite the less formal circumstances of the presentation. Approval procedure is similar to that under paragraph (2). Under Rule 12(e)(3), a wide variety of self-study activities, including self-designed reading programs, may be approved. The criteria rely for most approvals on the integrity of an approved sponsor and focus on quality of presentation and materials. The lawyer seeking credit must apply for approval. The Board is given flexibility in determining the amount of credit to be awarded for an activity that is not an electronic replay of a live course.