General Illinois Minimum Continuing Legal Education Credit Requirements
In Illinois, active status attorneys must complete 30.00 CLE credits every 2 years to maintain good standing with the Illinois State Bar. There are certain exemptions for judges, court staff, active members of the military, and attorneys who are members of the bar of another state with similar CLE requirements.
In addition, Illinois attorneys must complete 6.00 CLE credits in professional responsibility every 2 years. Of those, 1.00 credit must be in diversity and inclusion and 1.00 credit must be in mental health and substance abuse or participation in an approved year-long Lawyer-to-Lawyer Mentoring Program. The remaining requirement may be fulfilled in the areas of legal ethics, professionalism, civility, and/or sexual harassment prevention training.
Credit Hour: 60 minutes (rounded down to the nearest 1/4 hour).
Professional responsibility CLE includes topics such as legal ethics, professionalism, civility, mental health and substance abuse, diversity and inclusion, and attorney well-being. These courses must meet the Illinois MCLE Board’s standards and be specifically accredited in this category.
You must complete all required Illinois CLE credits by June 30 of your reporting year, and the deadline for reporting credits is July 31 at 11:59 p.m. CDT of your reporting year.
The Illinois CLE reporting period is 2 years and is assigned according to the first letter of your last name. Your reporting period ends on June 30 of the second year of your reporting period.
- Last names A-M report in even-numbered years
- Last names N-Z report in odd-numbered years
Illinois does not offer an official grace period for its Illinois MCLE credit deadline. Credits must be completed by June 30 and reported to the Illinois Bar Association by July 31. If you miss the completion deadline, you may need to request reinstatement or a MCLE compliance deadline extension and could be subject to fees.
NBI reports your credit to the Illinois MCLE Board.
You must complete all required Illinois CLE credits by June 30 of your reporting year, and the deadline for reporting credits is July 31 at 11:59 p.m. CDT of your reporting year.
Attorneys may review their credit transcript on the MCLE Board of the Supreme Court of Illinois website. An attorney's online transcript is their MCLE report.
NBI reports your CLE credits directly to the Illinois MCLE Board. However, attorneys are ultimately responsible for verifying that their attendance has been correctly recorded on the MCLE Board’s transcript and for reporting compliance by the July 31 deadline.
Experienced attorneys can fulfill their Illinois CLE requirement by completing courses approved and accredited by the Illinois MCLE Board. Examples of accepted course formats include:
Live CLE
- Live Technology
- Live In Person
Recorded Technology
Illinois attorneys in a 2-year reporting period may carry over 10.00 CLE credits to their next reporting period. You may carry over professional responsibility credits.
No. Illinois does not limit the number of CLE hours you may earn through online or recorded technology formats, as long as the courses are accredited by the Illinois MCLE Board.
There is no limit to the number of CLE credits you can earn through recorded technology courses.
Yes. There is no requirement to attend live events. You may complete all 30.00 CLE hours - including the 6.00 professional responsibility credits - through accredited OnDemand or recorded technology courses, as long as they are approved by the Illinois MCLE Board.
No. In-program attendance verification is not required.
Yes. Illinois attorneys may earn CLE credit for teaching an accredited CLE course or law school class, writing legal publications, or mentoring under the Lawyer-to-Lawyer Mentoring Program approved by the Commission on Professionalism. These activities must meet the MCLE Board’s content and credit guidelines.
Yes. Attorneys may earn limited MCLE credit for qualifying pro bono legal services, provided the work meets the Illinois Supreme Court’s Rule 795(d)(9) criteria and is properly documented and approved.
- Illinois MCLE Board Contact Information:
- Address: The MCLE Board of the Supreme Court of Illinois, 200 W. Madison Street, Suite 900, Chicago, IL 60606
- Phone Number: (312) 924-2420
- Website: www.mcleboard.org
Are you newly admitted to the Illinois State Bar? Here’s what you need to know:
Newly admitted attorneys in Illinois must complete 15.00 CLE credits by the last day of the month that occurs one year after their admission to practice law. Attorneys that were not previously admitted to another state bar must complete:
- A Basic Skills Course that meets the requirements set by the Illinois CLE Board. The Basic Skills Course must include at least 6.00 professional responsibility credits, including 1.00 credit in diversity and inclusion and 1.00 credit in mental health and substance abuse. An attorney may satisfy this requirement by participating in a mentoring program approved by the Commission on Professionalism.
- At least 9.00 additional hours of CLE credit from approved Illinois CLE courses.
New attorneys who complete a Basic Skills Course and participate in an approved mentoring program will only need to complete 3.00 additional hours of CLE credit to meet their 15.00 credit CLE requirement.
New attorneys must report compliance to the MCLE Board within 31 days of completion of their new attorney MCLE requirements.
Newly Admitted attorneys can fulfill their Illinois CLE requirement by completing courses approved and accredited by the Illinois MCLE Board. Examples of accepted course formats include:
Live CLE
- Live Technology
- Live In Person
Recorded Technology
Yes, but your requirements are slightly different. If you practiced law in another state for at least one of the three years prior to your admission to the Illinois State Bar, you must complete 15.00 CLE credits, including 4.00 professional responsibility credits, by the last day of the month that occurs one year after your admission to the Illinois State Bar.
Yes. Once you have completed all of the MCLE requirements for your one-year reporting period, you may carry over up to 15.00 credits, including 6.00 professional responsibility credits, to your first two-year reporting period.
You must complete the MCLE requirements for new attorneys by the last day of the month that occurs one year after you were admitted to the Illinois Bar. Your first regular 2-year MCLE reporting period begins on July 1 of the next:
- Even-numbered year, if your last name begins with a letter A through M
- Odd-numbered year, if your last name begins with a letter N through Z
Yes. All new attorneys must complete 15.00 MCLE credits in the first year after admission to the Illinois State Bar. The topics required for those credits vary depending on whether the attorney practiced law in another state in the 3-year period before admission to the Illinois State Bar.
New attorneys who were not previously admitted to any state bar must complete a Basic Skills Course that is approved by the Illinois State Bar. This course must include 6.00 professional responsibility credits, including 1.00 credit in diversity and inclusion and 1.00 credit in mental health and substance abuse. The other 9.00 CLE credits can be earned from approved Illinois CLE courses.
Attorneys newly admitted to the Illinois State Bar who practiced law in another jurisdiction for at least one of the three years immediately preceding admission to the Illinois State Bar must complete 15.00 MCLE credits, including 4.00 professional responsibility credits.
Illinois' newly admitted attorney rules apply to attorneys during the first year following their admission to practice in Illinois. The newly admitted attorney requirements must be completed by the last day of the month occurring one year after their admission.