Beginning in 2025 with Compliance Group 1 (A-G), the State Bar will require all attorneys to include an additional unit of Competence Education, 1 unit of Civility Education, and 1 unit of Technology in the Practice of Law Education within the 25 units of credit require every 3 years. 

What does this mean for you?
 All attorneys should review what programs they’ve attended in 2023 and 2024 to ensure they’ve completed the additional training required before their compliance group’s reporting deadline. Many providers, including SCBA, began adding such training to our regular curriculum beginning last year; however, if the credits advertised do not specifically indicate they offer the credits you require, then the program does not qualify for such. Credits for a program cannot be changed retroactively. 
 
What are the full MCLE requirements now?
While all attorneys will still be required to complete 25 hours of MCLE every three years, the total hours must now include no less than the following:

• At least 12.5 credit hours must be participatory credit hours (vs. self-study);
• Legal Ethics: 4 credit hours;
• Elimination of Bias: 2 credit hours of dealing with the recognition and elimination of bias in the legal profession and society by reason of, but not limited to, sex, color, race, religion, ancestry, national origin, physical disability, age, or sexual orientation.
  • Implicit Bias/Bias-Reducing Strategies: 1 hour of this requirement must focus on implicit bias and the promotion of bias-reducing strategies to address how unintended biases regarding race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, or other characteristics undermine confidence in the legal system;
• Competence: At least two credit hours of education addressing competence, 1 hour of which must focus on prevention and detection
  • Wellness: 1 hour of may focus on attorney wellness; 
• Technology: At least 1 credit hour of education addressing technology in the practice of law; and
• Civility: At least 1 hour of education addressing civility in the legal profession.

For current and new MCLE credit requirements, a licensee may reduce the required 25 hours in proportion to the number of full months the licensee was inactive or exempt in the 36‐month compliance period, except that the requirements of paragraphs (B)(2)(a)(ii) and (B)(2)(a)(iii) may not be reduced to less than one hour each. Up to half the reduced hours may be self‐study.