N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 22 § 1500.4

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 45, November 2, 2024

Section 1500.4 - Accreditation

(a) Procedure. Unless a provider has been granted accredited provider status pursuant to subdivision (c) of this section, accreditation of continuing legal education courses or programs must be sought at least 60 days prior to the occurrence of the course or program, except in extenuating circumstances and with prior permission of the CLE board.

(b) Standards. Continuing legal education courses or programs to be accredited shall comply with the following guidelines:

(1) One hour of continuing legal education credit shall consist of at least 50 minutes of instruction, exclusive of introductory remarks, meals, breaks, or other noneducational activities.

(2) The course or program must have significant intellectual or practical content and its primary objective must be to increase the professional legal competency of the attorney in ethics and professionalism, skills, law practice management, areas of professional practice, diversity, inclusion and elimination or bias, and/or cybersecurity, privacy and data protection.

(3) The course or program shall be taught by instructors with expertise in the subject matter being taught and shall be specifically tailored to attorneys.

(4) The faculty of the course or program shall include at least one attorney in good standing, who shall actively participate in the course or program.

(5) The course or program shall not be taught by a disbarred attorney, whether the disbarred attorney is the sole presenter or one of several instructors.

(6) The continuing legal education course or program must be offered by a provider that has substantial, recent experience in offering continuing legal education to attorneys, or that has demonstrated an ability to effectively organize and present continuing legal education to attorneys.

(7) Thorough, high quality, readable and carefully prewritten materials must be made available to all participants at or before the time the course or program is presented, unless the absence of materials, or the provision of such materials shortly after the course or program, is pre-approved by the CLE board. Written materials shall satisfy the criteria set forth in the regulations and guidelines.

(8) The cost of continuing legal education courses or programs to the participating attorney shall be reasonable.

(9) Providers must have a financial hardship policy as provided in the regulations and guidelines.

(10) The course or program must be conducted in a physical setting that is comfortable and conducive to learning.

(11) At the conclusion of the course or program, each participant must be given the opportunity to complete an evaluation questionnaire addressing the quality, effectiveness and usefulness of the particular course or program. A summary of the results of the survey(s) must be submitted to the CLE board at the end of the calendar year in which the course or program was given. Providers must maintain the questionnaires for a period of four years following the course or program.

(12) Providers of continuing legal education courses or programs shall provide a certificate of attendance to all persons completing the continuing legal education course or program.

(13) Providers of continuing legal education courses or programs must maintain an official attendance list of participants in the program, and the time, date, location, title, speaker(s) and amount of approved CLE credit for each course or program, for at least four years after the completion date.

(14) Programs that satisfy these standards and that cross academic lines, such as accounting-tax seminars, may be considered for approval by the CLE board.

(c) Accredited provider status.

(1) Procedure. Application may be made for accredited provider status by submitting the appropriate forms and materials to the CLE board pursuant to CLE board regulations and guidelines.

(2) Requirements. Accredited provider status may be granted at the discretion of the CLE board to applicants satisfying the requirements of this section and, as well, the following requirements:

(i) the provider has presented, within the prior three years, separate programs of continuing legal education that meet the standards set forth in subdivision (b) of this section and the regulations and guidelines of the CLE board; or

(ii) the provider has demonstrated to the board that its CLE activities have consistently met the standards set forth in subdivision (b) of this section and the regulations and guidelines of the CLE board.

Providers that meet the foregoing requirements may include bar associations, law schools, law firms and legal departments (including corporate, nonprofit and municipal and State law departments).

(3) Duration of accredited provider status. Once a provider has been granted accredited provider status, the continuing legal education courses or programs sponsored by that provider are presumptively approved for credit for a period of three years from the date of the grant of such status.

(4) Accredited provider reports. Providers granted accredited provider status shall file a written report with the CLE board each year at a time fixed by the board. The report shall describe the continuing legal education activities conducted during the prior 12 months and shall be in such detail and form as required by the board and by the regulations and guidelines. The accredited status of a provider may be continued by filing an application for renewal with the board before the end of the provider's accreditation period.

(5) Renewal of accredited provider status. Renewal of accredited provider status shall be for periods of three years. The CLE board shall determine if there are pending or past breaches of these rules or regulations and guidelines, and the board, in its discretion, may condition renewal upon the provider meeting additional requirements specified by the board.

(i) If an application for renewal is timely filed, the accredited status shall continue until the board acts on the application.

(ii) If an application for renewal is not filed before the end of the provider's accreditation period, the provider's accredited status will terminate at the end of the period. Any application received thereafter shall be considered by the board as an initial application for accredited provider status.

(6) Revocation. Accredited provider status may be revoked by the board if the reporting requirements of these rules and regulations and guidelines are not met or, if upon review of the provider's performance, the CLE board determines that the content of the course or program materials, the quality of the CLE activities, or the provider' s performance does not meet the standards set forth in these rules and regulations and guidelines. In such event, the CLE board shall send the provider a 30-day notice of revocation by first class mail. The provider may request a review of such revocation, and the CLE board shall determine the request within 90 days of receipt of such request. The decision of the CLE board shall be final after such review.

(d) Provider list. A list of accredited providers whose continuing legal education courses or activities have been presumptively approved for credit shall be compiled and published periodically by the CLE board. Lists shall be made available at each of the appellate divisions and at such other offices and electronic sites as the Chief Administrator of the Courts shall determine.

(e) Announcement. Providers who have received approval for continuing legal education courses and programs may indicate that their course or program has received CLE board approval as follows:

"This (transitional) continuing legal education course (or program) has been approved in accordance with the requirements of the Continuing Legal Education Board for a maximum of ________ credit hours, of which ________ credit hours can be applied toward the ________ requirement, and ________ credit hours can be applied toward the ________ requirement."

Where a program or segment of a program might reasonably be used to satisfy more than one category of instruction, e.g., either ethics or areas of professional practice, the approved provider may so indicate, but must state that duplicate credit for the same hour of instruction is not permitted; an election must be made by the attendee, and each hour may be counted as satisfying only one category of instruction. The following language may be used:

and an aggregate of ________ credit hours can be applied toward the ________ requirement or the ________ requirement.

N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 22 § 1500.4

Amended New York State Register September 20, 2017/Volume XXXIX, Issue 38, eff. 7/1/2018

Amended New York State Register March 7, 2018/Volume XL, Issue 10, eff. 7/1/2018

Amended New York State Register July 6, 2022/Volume XLIV, Issue 27, eff. 1/1/2023