Florida attorneys – CLE update
2024 Updated Florida Bar MCLE RequirementsThe Florida Bar requires attorneys to complete 30 hours per reporting cycle, including at least 5 credits in legal ethics, professionalism , substance abuse , or mental illness awareness, with at least 2 hours of a legal professionalism course produced by The Florida Bar. Three of the 30 credit hours must be in approved technology programs.
The Supreme Court of Florida amended Bar Rule 6-10.3(b) (Minimum Hourly Continuing Legal Education Requirements), effective January 8, 2024, to:
- Reduce the overall CLE requirement from 33 to 30 hours per reporting cycle.
- Require Bar members to complete a two-hour legal professionalism course produced by The Florida Bar and approved by this Court during each reporting cycle. This two-hour course, which the Bar will offer free of charge, replaces the existing one-hour professionalism program requirement. *
- Remove “bias elimination” from the requirement that “at least 5 of the 30 credit hours must be in approved legal ethics, professionalism, substance abuse, or mental health and wellness programs.” [Courses in “bias elimination” that meet The Florida Bar’s general course approval requirements will continue to count toward fulfilling Bar members’ overall 30-hour CLE requirement, but such courses will no longer count toward fulfilment of the five-hour sub-requirement specified in the rule.]
Further guidance from the Supreme Court of Florida: Any “bias elimination” courses taken prior to the effective date of the amendments to Bar Rule 6-10.3 will count toward a member’s fulfilment of the five hour sub-requirement for the member’s applicable reporting cycle. For any member with less than three months remaining in their CLE reporting cycle on the effective date of the Bar Rule 6-10.3 amendments, the requirement to take the two-hour Bar-produced course on professionalism will not apply until the member’s subsequent reporting cycle.
The existing one-hour professionalism program requirement is replaced. Bias elimination is removed from the sub-requirement of courses in approved legal ethics, professionalism, substance abuse, or mental health and wellness programs. Consult the Florida Bar to determine your compliance period. No credits may be carried over to the next compliance period. For additional information, please see the FAQ page on the Florida Bar website.
*NBB: MCLE London does not deliver this two hour course
California attorneys – CLE update
California MCLE Requirements 2025New MCLE compliance requirements (extracted from The State Bar of California Memorandum to Attorneys of 2024 qv)
For the compliance period ending January 31, 2025, and subject to the proportional requirements (State Bar Rule 2.72(C)(2)(c) and exceptions (State Bar Rule 2.54) licensees are required to complete and report
25 hours of MCLE within the three-year compliance period as follows:
- At least 12.5 credit hours must be participatory credit hours;
- Legal Ethics: At least 4 credit hours of legal ethics;
- Elimination of Bias: At least 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 2 credit hours of education addressing competence, one hour of which must focus on prevention and detection and one hour of which may focus on attorney wellness;
- Technology: At least 1 credit hour of education addressing technology in the practice of law;
- Civility: At least 1 hour of education addressing civility in the legal profession.
New York attorneys – CLE update
New York CLE Requirements as at October 2025Total Requirement: 24 credit hours every two years
Credit Breakdown: 18 hours General | 4 hours Ethics and Professionalism | 1 hour of Diversity, Inclusion & Elimination of Bias | 1 hour Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Data Protection*
*Beginning on July 1, 2023, experienced and newly admitted attorneys must comply with the 1-credit requirement in the Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Data Protection category of CLE credit. Experienced attorneys due to re-register on or after July 1, 2023 (birthday is on or after July 1st) must complete at least 1 CLE credit hour in Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Data Protection as part of their biennial CLE requirement. Please see the CLE Program Rules at 22 NYCRR 1500.22(a).
You may choose to complete the Cybersecurity credit in Cybersecurity General or Cybersecurity Ethics (or a combination of the two: ½ credit in Cybersecurity General and ½ credit in Cybersecurity Ethics).
You may count a maximum of 3 credit hours of Cybersecurity Ethics – but not Cybersecurity General – toward your 4-credit Ethics and Professionalism requirement.
Example: if you earn 3 credits in Cybersecurity Ethics, then you still need to earn 1 credit in Ethics and Professionalism, 1 credit in Diversity, Inclusion, and Elimination of Bias, and 19 credits in any category of credit – a total of 24 credits
Newly admitted attorneys whose admission to the New York Bar is on or after July 1, 2023, must complete at least 1 CLE credit hour in Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Data Protection as part of their newly admitted CLE requirement. Please see the CLE Program Rules at 22 NYCRR 1500.12(a).
Credit Format:
Veteran Attorneys may complete all credits online.
Newly admitted attorneys must take 16 total accredited CLE hours of transitional CLE courses, of which 3 Ethics and Professionalism must be in a traditional Live classroom setting, a fully interactive video conference, or a live webcast or teleconference.
The required 6 Skills credits must be completed in a traditional Live classroom setting or a fully interactive video conference. The credits must be completed during each of the first two years of admission to the Bar.
NBB: MCLE London does not provide skills sessions
The remaining 7 Law Practice Management or Areas of Professional Practice credits may be completed in any approved format.
3.0 Ethics
6.0 Skills
7.0 Law Practice Management and/or areas of Professional Practice
Compliance Deadline: Within 30 days of attorney’s birthday on alternate years