How to Apply for Accreditation of a CLE Program Information for Sponsors

Thank you for sponsoring continuing legal education programs. Your programs help Ohio attorneys meet their CLE obligations under Rule X of the Supreme Court Rules for the Government of the Bar of Ohio.

The information provided in this “FAQ” is a general overview of the requirements relating to approval of CLE programs. For more detailed information, please see Gov.Bar R. X and its associated Regulations.

Sponsors of Ohio CLE programs are not required to be designated as an “accredited” or “approved” provider to have their programs considered and approved. The Commission on Continuing Legal Educations (Commission) approves individual activities, not Sponsors. This means that any sponsor may submit an application for accreditation and, if the activity meets CLE requirements under Gov.Bar R. X, the program will be approved.

Gov.Bar R. X and the corresponding Attorney Continuing Legal Educations Regulations contain specific requirements and obligations related to sponsoring a CLE Program. For example, there are restrictions as to the manner in which a Sponsor can advertise accreditation by the Commission and there are deadlines by which a Sponsor must submit attendance credits to the Commission. For these reasons, we strongly suggest Sponsors familiarize themselves with Gov.Bar R. X and the corresponding Regulations before submitting an application.

Course Content

The CLE Activity shall have significant intellectual or practical content, the primary objective of which is to improve the participant’s professional competence as an Attorney or Judge.

The CLE Activity shall be an organized program of learning dealing with matters directly related to the practice of law, professional conduct or ethical obligations, law office economics, or other subjects that will maintain and improve the quality of legal services in Ohio and that promotes the purposes of Gov.Bar R. X.

A CLE Activity for judges, magistrates and acting judges shall be an organized program of learning dealing with matters directly related to the law or judicial administration that promotes the purposes of Gov.Jud. R. IV.

Qualifications of Lecturers

The leaders or lecturers shall be qualified by education or have the necessary practical skills to conduct the program effectively.

Course Materials

Before or at the time of the CLE Activity, the Sponsor shall provide each attendee course materials in the form of written, electronic, or other format that are of such quality and quantity to indicate that adequate time has been devoted to their preparation and that they will be of value to the attendees. Although a Sponsor may provide materials only in electronic format, the Sponsor shall make materials available in written format prior to the activity upon request from an attendee.

Course materials in Power Point or other format shall be subject to the same criteria as other materials.

Physical Setting of Activity

The CLE Activity must be presented in a suitable setting, conducive to a good educational environment.

Course Evaluations

The Sponsor shall develop and implement methods to evaluate its course offerings to determine their effectiveness and the extent to which they meet the needs of attendees. Upon a request from the Commission, Sponsors must provide course evaluations.

Minimum Hour Requirement; Calculation of Credit Hours

Attendance at the activity shall be open to all attorneys and judges and shall consist of a minimum of thirty minutes of instruction. Thirty minutes of instruction equals one-half credit hour. Only time of actual instruction counts toward a credit hour. Partial hours over the minimum of thirty minutes are rounded to the nearest one-quarter of an hour.

Credit is not awarded for breaks, opening, or closing remarks.

Application and Supporting Documentation

Sponsors must apply online for CLE accreditation through the Sponsor Portal. If your organization is new to applying for Ohio accreditation, you must first set up a new sponsor account to access the Sponsor Portal. Based on the activity type (traditional classroom or self-study), you will be required to answer a series of questions pertaining to the activity type(s). You are also required to upload information about the CLE program, such as, a detailed time agenda, brochure describing the program, and the names and qualifications of the speakers. A guide to submitting applications through the Sponsor Portal is available on the Supreme Court website.

Special Methods of Instruction

Sponsors may utilize videotape; motion picture; audiotape; simultaneous broadcast including videoconferencing, teleconferencing, and audio-conferencing; computer-based education; or other such systems or devices provided they meet all standards of Reg. 406 in addition to the following standards:

• There shall be an opportunity for attendees to ask questions of the program faculty during or immediately following the presentation;
• If the instruction is based on previously presented materials, the materials shall be current and, in any event, shall have been prepared no earlier than the calendar year immediately preceding the date the application for accreditation is filed. If the recorded material is older than one calendar year, the online application must provide evidence that the material has been reviewed by a subject matter expert and is still relevant and up-to-date;
• If the faculty members are not available either in person or via live telecommunication, then a qualified speaker, familiar with the recorded materials, shall be present to expand upon and provide supplemental commentary and to answer questions posed by attendees;
• If faculty members are not available, either in person or via live telecommunication, or if a qualified speaker is not present, then participants shall be provided with a methodology to ask questions and receive responses from faculty members within 72 hours of the presentation. Records of such questions and responses shall be retained by the sponsor for one year and provided to the Commission upon request.

Deadline and Fees for Courses Held in Ohio

If your program will take place in Ohio, you must submit your application, including required attachments, at least sixty days in advance of the program.  The application fee for timely submissions is $25.  An additional late fee of $100 is assessed if the application is submitted less than sixty days prior to the program. Fees must be paid on the Sponsor Portal at the time of submission by credit card or ACH payment.

If your program will take place outside of Ohio, please see below for information on fees and deadlines.

Review of Program

Once your application is received, it will be reviewed for completeness.  Incomplete applications will be returned with a request for additional information.  The typical turnaround time for reviewing an application is about 30-45 days. You can help ensure timely review of your application by filling out the application completely and submitting all required attachments.

You may track the progress of your application by using the Sponsor Portal.

Notification of Approval

If your program is approved for accreditation, you will receive an approval letter via e-mail that includes an Ohio Activity Code as well as the total number and type of hours for which your program has been approved.  Please reference the Ohio Activity Code in all correspondence and communication with this office.

The approval letter will also provide specific language you may use in your advertising materials. Please note that, until your program has been approved for accreditation, you may not advertise that it has been approved by the CLE Commission.

Sponsors must submit attendance credits to the Commission no later than 30 days after the program.  Attendance credits must be submitted through the Sponsor Portal.  Sponsors are required to retain attendance records for two years following presentation of the CLE program.

If your application is denied, you will receive a denial letter. The letter will give the reasons for denial, citing the applicable sections from the Rule and Regulations. You may file a written appeal of the denial within 30 days.

If your live (i.e., not self-study) program takes place outside Ohio, you are not required to seek approval before the program is held.  However, if you do seek post-program approval, your application should be submitted no later than sixty days after the program.

No sponsor application or late fee is required for programs that take place outside Ohio.

By submitting an application for accreditation of a CLE program, Sponsors assume numerous obligations. A summary of some of these obligations follows:

Maintaining Activity Codes Confidentially

Sponsors should not include the Activity Code on any materials provided to the attorneys before or during the program.  However, Sponsors should provide attorneys with the Activity Code at the conclusion of the program to enable attorneys to maintain accurately their own CLE records.

Monitoring of Program and Attendees

Sponsors must monitor and track when attorneys arrive and leave their activity so that they can report accurate attendance hours to the Commission.  If an attorney wishes to leave the program early and has attended at least one 60-minute substantive hour, you may give the Activity Code to the attorney when he or she leaves.

Sponsors are required to monitor the attendees and deduct absences of more than 15 minutes from an attendee’s record.

The Commission also relies on Sponsors to take reasonable efforts to insure that attendees are actively engaged in the CLE Activity.  Such reasonable efforts include, but are not limited to, an announcement at the beginning of the program and after breaks asking attendees to turn off phones and electronic devices and to put away newspapers and other materials not related to the Activity.

Reporting Attorney Credits

The Commission relies on Sponsors to report accurately and promptly attorneys’ attendance and teaching credits.  This requirement applies equally to programs taking place in Ohio and outside the state.

Requests for credit for programs that took place in Ohio must be submitted within 30 days after the program.

If you requested pre-approval of a program that took place outside Ohio, requests for credit must be submitted within 30 days after the program.

If you requested post-program approval of a program that took place outside Ohio, requests for credit must be submitted within 30 days after you receive notice of approval of the program.

Electronic Reporting

Sponsors are required to submit attendance credit through the Commission’s Sponsor Portal. As of November 16th, 2019 Sponsors and their staff can maintain individual accounts for the Sponsor Portal. Previous versions required a single account for each sponsor. To log in to the sponsor portal go to https://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/sponsorportal.

Credits can be submitted through submitting a spreadsheet or by individually entering them directly in the portal. Teaching credit can be submitted directly through the Sponsor Portal, but not through the spreadsheet. You can still submit teaching credits using Form 2.  It is recommended that speakers complete Form 2 at the seminar so that sponsors can mail the completed teaching forms together to the Commission.

Recordkeeping

Sponsors are required to maintain accurate and complete records of each CLE program for two years following the program.

If you are seeking approval for an activity that will be accredited as New Lawyers Training instruction, you should read CCLE Reg. 414 and familiarize yourself with the specific requirements associated with this type of program. Please note that new lawyers training activities must be held in-person or by live webcast. On-demand activities are not eligible for new lawyers training credit.

Definition of “New Lawyers Training”

A New Lawyers Training activity is an educational course for lawyers newly admitted to the practice of law that satisfies the requirements of Gov. Bar R. X, Sec. 14, and the requirements of CCLE Reg. 414, and is approved by the Commission pursuant to CCLE Reg. 414.

Eligibility for Accreditation

To be eligible for accreditation, a New Lawyers Training activity must meet the following requirements:

• The course shall satisfy the standards of CCLE Reg. 406 and, if applicable, CCLE Reg. 408;
• The instruction shall be live, including in-person instruction, live webcast, or live teleconference;
• The course shall be a minimum of one hour in length;
• The Sponsor shall assure that a minimum of twenty-five percent of the available seating at the course is made available to attorneys required to comply with New Lawyers Training requirements of Gov. Bar R. X, Sec. 14;
• The activity shall include thorough, high-quality, written materials that emphasize and include checklists, practical instructions, and forms with guidance as to how they should be completed and when they should be used.

Submitting Attendance Credit for New Lawyers Training programs

Attendance and teaching credit should be submitted within thirty days of the program.  See, "Sponsor Obligations" above for additional information regarding submission of attendance and teaching credits.

If you are seeking accreditation for a Special Program, you should read CCLE Reg. 407 and familiarize yourself with the specific requirements associated with these types of programs. 

Definition of “Special Program”

A special program is defined as a CLE Activity sponsored by a law firm, corporation, governmental agency, a group of attorneys in public service, or a similar entity primarily for the education of its employees, members, associates, or clients.

Eligibility for Accreditation

To be eligible for accreditation, a Special Program must meet the standards of CLE Regulation 407, including, but not limited to, the following requirements:

• One or more of the speakers shall not be a member, partner, associate, client, or employee of the sponsoring organization;
• The program shall be open to attorneys and judges not associated with the sponsor, who shall assure that a minimum of one-quarter of the available seating at the program is made available to attendees not associated with the sponsor. Activities as defined in Reg. 407.3 are exempt from this requirement.
• If confidential information is discussed, the program is not eligible for CLE credit. Unless activities fall under the Reg. 407.3 exemption.

The Commission may grant a variance from the provisions of CCLE Reg. 407 upon written application to the Commission.

Submitting Attendance Credit for Special Programs

An attendee who is associated with your organization should receive in-house credit. Please check the appropriate “in-house” box on the sponsor spreadsheet to designate those attorneys who should receive in-house credit.

An attendee who is not associated with your organization should receive regular, i.e., not in-house, CLE credit.

Teaching credit for Special Programs shall be reported using Form 2. However, online submission of teaching credit via the sponsor portal is preferred.

Caps on Special Program Credit Hours

Not more than twelve hours of CLE Credit for any biennial compliance period may be earned by an attorney or judge for attendance at a Special Program sponsored by an entity with which the attorney or judge is associated. Unless sponsor meets requirements under Reg. 407.2 (B) or 407.3 and activity is granted accreditation pursuant to 407.2 (B) or 407.3.  (see exceptions noted below)

Exceptions

The following exceptions shall apply:

• Attorneys in public service, such as the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, a county prosecuting attorney’s office, a U.S. Attorney office, a public defender office, a legal department of a state or federal agency, a legal services program, or a law-department of a municipal corporation, may obtain up to 24 hours of CLE Credit for Skills-Based activities for any biennial compliance period. (Reg. 407.2 (B));
• Special Programs sponsored by the Department of Justice Office of Legal Education and the Federal Public Defender are required to meet the requirements of Reg. 407, except that they shall not be required to meet the standards of Reg. 407.1(C) (one or more speakers shall not be a member, partner, associate, client, or employee of the sponsoring organization), 407.1(D) (Special Program must be open to attorneys and judges not associated with the Sponsor), and 407.1(F) (a Special Program is ineligible for accreditation if confidential information is discussed). Attorneys attending Special Programs sponsored by the Department of Justice Office of Legal Education and the Federal Public Defender may obtain up to 24 hours of CLE Credit for any biennial compliance period for attendance at such programs. (Reg. 407.3).

If you are seeking accreditation for a Self-Study Activity, you should read CCLE Reg. 409 and familiarize yourself with the specific requirements associated with these types of programs.  To seek accreditation of a Self-Study Program, apply online on the Sponsor Portal and select "Self-Study" as the activity type.

Definition of “Self-Study Activity”

A Self-Study Activity is a CLE Activity of individualized learning engaged in by an attorney or judge outside the standard classroom or seminar setting, including but not limited to live interactive educational methods such as real-time video conference or teleconference.  Special methods of instruction pursuant to Reg. 408 using electronic methodology such as on-demand courses, may be accredited as Self-Study Activities pursuant to Reg. 409.

Definitions of Self-Study Formats:

Live Webcast
Is a live interactive, real-time video conference, teleconference, or audio webinar.
On Demand
Is a pre-recorded CLE activity such as a previous live webcast or in-person CLE activity.

Eligibility for Accreditation

To be eligible for accreditation, a Self-Study Activity must meet the standards of CCLE Regulation 409, including, but not limited to, the following requirements:

• Only Sponsors may apply for accreditation of a Self-Study Activity.  Attorneys and judges may not apply on their own behalf for accreditation of Self-Study Activities;
• Applications for accreditation of Self-Study Activities must include a description of the Self-Study Activity and method of instruction; names and qualifications of the speakers; a detailed time agenda; and date on which the Self-Study Activity was produced;
• The Sponsor shall demonstrate that it can identify the attorneys or judges who engaged in the Self-Study Activity using a minimum of two of the following methods of identification: email address and confidential password combinations, security or challenge questions, images and image phrase authentication, or other methods acceptable to the Commission.

The Sponsor shall certify that the attorney or judge who engaged in the Self-Study Activity obtained the minimum competency and actively participated in the Activity for an amount of time equivalent to the number of CLE Credit hours requested.  Participation may be confirmed via polling, verification codes, completion of test questions demonstrating understanding of the material presented, or other methods acceptable to the Commission.

Submitting Credit for Self-Study Programs

Sponsors should report attorney credits for self-study programs within 30 days of completion.  Credits must be submitted electronically through the Sponsor Portal.

Self-Study Credit Hours

Effective Jan. 1, 2023, self-study caps have been eliminated for attorneys. The changes will allow attorneys to comply with their biennial CLE requirements through approved self-study courses.

The amendments will also increase the self-study caps for judges and magistrates to 20 hours per compliance period and eliminate the separate cap for live webinars in future compliance periods. The first biennium that judges and magistrates will be subject to the new 20-hour self-study cap will be the 2023-2024 compliance period.

Attorneys are required to complete two and one-half hours of CLE credit in “professional conduct” instruction.

Attorneys may earn the professional conduct credits through a combination of professional conduct topics.  The instruction related to the professional conduct requirement may be obtained in a single program or in separate programs that include one or more of the subjects set forth below:

• Legal ethics, which shall include instruction on the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct;
• Professionalism, which shall include instruction on the role of attorneys in promoting ethics and professionalism among attorneys by facilitating compliance with the requirements of the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct, A Lawyer’s Creed, A Lawyer’s Aspirational Ideals, and the Statement Regarding the Provision of Pro Bono Legal Services by Ohio Lawyers, adopted by the Supreme Court of Ohio.  Sponsors may also wish to read the Commission on Professionalism’s “Professionalism CLE Guidelines” for suggestions on professionalism topics;
• Alcoholism, substance abuse, or mental health issues, which shall include instruction on any of their causes, prevention, detection, and treatment alternatives, as applicable;
• Access to justice and fairness in the courts and how these issues impact public trust and confidence in the judicial system and the perception of justice in Ohio, which shall include instruction on one or any combination of the following topics:
  • Interacting with self-represented litigants;
  • Encouraging pro bono representation;
  • Accommodating language interpretation;
  • Assuring fairness in matters of race, ethnicity, foreign origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, socio-economic status, or other relevant topics.

When submitting an application that includes a request for professional conduct credit, be sure to clearly mark on the agenda those sessions you wish to have considered for such credit.  It is also recommended that you submit a few pages of the course materials for these sessions so that the Commission can determine whether they meet the requirements for accreditation as professional conduct instruction.

Attorneys may be eligible to receive CLE credit for providing certain types of pro bono legal services.  Pro bono programs that wish to seek pro bono credit for their volunteer attorneys should read Gov.Bar R. X, Sec. 5(H) and Reg. 415.

Definition of “Pro Bono” CLE Credit

The provision of legal services by a volunteer attorney to either a person of limited means or a charitable organization in which the legal service is assigned, verified, and reported to the Commission by any of the following:

1. An organization receiving funding for pro bono programs or services from the Legal Services Corporation or the Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation.
2. A metropolitan or county bar association.
3. The Ohio State Bar Association.
4. The Ohio Access to Justice Foundation.
5. Any other organization recognized by the Commission as providing pro bono programs or services in Ohio.

Eligibility for Accreditation

Volunteer attorneys may not seek CLE credit for their pro bono legal services on their own.  They must seek such credit through application with the pro bono sponsor, which is responsible for submitting CLE credits to the Commission.

For purposes of CLE accreditation, pro bono sponsors are deemed to be “sponsors” as defined in Gov.Bar R. X and the Regulations and, to the extent applicable, are required to comply with all sponsor obligations as set forth in the rule and regulations, such as maintaining records of pro bono work engaged in by their volunteer attorneys, verifying attorney pro bono hours, and submitting attorney pro bono hours for CLE credit to the Commission.

Process for Seeking CLE Credit for Volunteer Attorneys

If the pro bono program needs to be recognized by the Commission as providing pro bono programs or services in Ohio (see, Gov.Bar R. X, Sec. 5(H)(5)), the program must first complete a Form 21.  If, after review of the Form 21, the program is recognized by the Commission, the program then should submit a Form 22 for accreditation of its specific pro bono program.

Pro bono programs that wish to seek CLE credit for their volunteer attorneys must complete a Form 22 for submission to the Commission.  If the application is approved, the pro bono program will be provided with an Activity Code that the program will use to submit attorney attendance credits to the Commission.  The program approval will be for one calendar year.  Pro bono programs must resubmit a Form 22 for each year in which it seeks CLE credit for its attorneys.

Reporting Pro Bono CLE Credit to the Commission

Attorneys who wish to receive CLE Credit for their pro bono legal services should complete Part I of Form 23 for submission to the pro bono program.  The pro bono program should review the information provided by the attorney for completeness and accuracy.  After the sponsor has verified the information submitted by the attorney in Part I of Form 23, the sponsor should complete Part II of Form 23 to calculate the number of CLE Credit hours to which the attorney is entitled.  The pro bono program is responsible for submitting these credit hours to the CLE Commission through the Sponsor Portal. Sponsors should retain the originals of Form 23 for two years.

Calculation of CLE Credit

Attorneys are eligible to receive one CLE credit hour for every six hours of pro bono legal services performed.  Pro bono programs are responsible for verifying the number of pro bono hours their volunteer attorneys have worked and dividing the total number of hours by six before submitting the CLE credit hours to the Commission.  An attorney must provide a minimum of six hours of pro bono legal services to be eligible to receive one hour of CLE credit.  After the minimum one-hour threshold has been met, additional pro bono hours will be rounded to the nearest quarter hour.  For example, if an attorney provides six hours of pro bono legal services, the attorney would receive one hour of CLE credit; if the attorney provides nine hours of pro bono legal services, the attorney would receive 1.5 hours of CLE credit; if the attorney provides ten hours of pro bono legal services, the attorney would receive 1.75 hours of CLE credit.

Pro bono programs should submit CLE credit for their volunteer attorneys no later than 30 days following the end of the calendar year in which the pro bono services were performed.

The Commission may, upon submission of an application in a manner authorized by the Commission, designate Established Sponsors of CLE Activities.

Established Sponsors of Live Programs

The Commission may grant to a sponsor of CLE Activities the designation as an Established Sponsor if (1) the Sponsor is not primarily a provider of Special Programs and (2) the Sponsor demonstrates to the Commission, by clear and convincing evidence, that its CLE Activities have consistently met the standards set forth in Reg. 406.

Established Sponsors of Self-Study Programs

The Commission may grant to a Sponsor of Self-Study Activities the designation as an Established Self-Study Sponsor if the Sponsor demonstrates to the Commission, by clear and convincing evidence, that its Self-Study Activities have consistently met the standards set forth in Reg. 409.

General Requirements for Established Sponsors and Established Self-Study Sponsors

Designation as an Established Sponsor or Established Self-Study Sponsor shall be for one year, subject to annual renewal if the sponsor continues to meet the Established Sponsor criteria.  Established Sponsor designation may be revoked if the Commission determines that the quality of the sponsors’ activities do not meet the standards set forth in the Regulations; the annual fee has not been paid; or the Commission finds violations of any other applicable Regulations.

Except for New Lawyers Training courses, CLE Activities held by an Established Sponsor and Self-Study Activities held by an Established Self-Study Sponsor shall be deemed to be approved and shall not be subject to the approval process set forth in the Regulations.  However, individual activities presented by an Established Sponsor and Established Self-Study Sponsor may be reviewed and subject to denial if they do not meet the requirements of Gov.Bar R. X or the Regulations.

Established Sponsors and Established Self-Study Sponsors shall pay the annual fee by January 1 each year.

An Established Sponsor shall announce each CLE Activity in a manner required by the Commission at least thirty days prior to the presentation of the Activity.

An Established Self-Study Sponsor shall announce each Self-Study Activity in a manner required by the Commission at least thirty days prior to the initial availability of the Self-Study Activity.

Law Schools accredited by the American Bar Association

An ABA-accredited law school acting as a sponsor of CLE activities shall be considered an Established Sponsor.