Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 44, November 2, 2024
Section 11 - Accreditation of Accredited Continuing Legal Education Providers(a) Application may be made for accreditation as an Accredited Continuing Legal Education Provider by submitting the appropriate form to the Board and paying the required fee.(b) The grant of accreditation shall be effective for a period of two (2) years from date of the grant. The accreditation may be continued for an additional two (2) year period as follows: 1. The accredited status of a Certified Continuing Legal Education Provider may be continued by filing an application and paying the required fee with the Board before the end of the provider's accreditation period.2. The Board shall determine if there are pending or past breaches of the rules or these regulations, and the Board, at its discretion, may condition continuation upon the provider meeting additional requirements specified by the Board.3. If an application for continuation is timely filed, the accredited status shall continue until the Board acts on the application for continuation.4. If an application for continuation 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.(c) Accredited Continuing Legal Education Provider status may be revoked by the Board if the reporting requirements of these regulations are not met or if, upon review of the provider's performance, the Board determines that content of the course material or the quality of the CLE activities or provider's performance does not meet the standards set forth in the rules and these regulations.(d) Accredited Continuing Legal Education Provider status may be granted at the discretion of the Board to applicants satisfying the following requirements: 1. The provider has presented, within the past two (2) years, five (5) separate programs of CLE which meets the standards of quality set forth in the rules and these regulations,or2. The provider has demonstrated to the Board that its CLE activities have consistently met the standards of quality set forth in the rules and these regulations,or3. Is an American Bar Association accredited law school.4. The person or persons responsible for provider's compliance with the Pennsylvania CLE requirements shall successfully complete a course of training established by the Board and administered by the Board staff. Training by the CLE Board staff will include: Rules and Regulations, provider reporting requirements, accreditation standards, compliance groups, deadlines, requirements for compliance, fee payment, and record keeping requirements.
The Board may require Accredited Providers to complete a course of training prior to continuation of the provider's accredited status.
(e) Providers granted such status shall file two (2) written reports with the Board each year at times fixed by the Board. These reports shall describe the CLE activities conducted during the prior six (6) months and shall be in such detail and form as required by the Board.(f) Providers shall file with the Board an announcement of each CLE activity on a form provided by the Board prior to the presentation of a CLE activity.(g) The Board shall accredit for profit corporations and associations as CLE providers in accordance with the rules and these regulations. Such accreditation of a for profit provider shall be effective on and after January 1, 1997. CLE credit will only be given for CLE courses offered and conducted outside the territory of Pennsylvania by accredited for profit corporations or associations. On and after September 1, 2000, CLE credit can be given for CLE courses offered by accredited for profit corporations or associations without regard to the geographic location of the course.(h) The provider shall have available a financial hardship policy for attorneys who wish to attend its courses, but for whom the cost of such courses would be a financial hardship. Upon request by the Board, the provider must produce the detailed financial hardship policy. The policy may be in the form of scholarships, waivers of course fees, reduced fees, or discounts.The provisions of this Section 11 amended March 8, 1996, effective 3/9/1996, 26 Pa.B. 984; amended November 29, 1996, effective 11/30/1996, 26 Pa.B. 5805; amended January 24, 1997, effective 1/25/1997, 27 Pa.B. 411; amended April 28, 2000, effective 9/1/2000, 30 Pa.B. 2350; amended November 1, 2000, effective 11/1/2000, 30 Pa.B. 5924.