MCLE Requirements
Credit hours required: 12 hours per reporting period
Specialty credits required: 3 hours of professional responsibility, legal ethics and/or practice management for experienced (practicing 2+ years) lawyers (professionalism hours) and 12 hours of professional responsibility, legal ethics and/or practice management for new lawyers in their first 2 full years of practicing law or providing legal services (new lawyer CPD) (continuing professional development)
Length of reporting period: 1 year
Compliance date: December 31
Compliance group: All attorneys
Reporting date: December 31
Minutes per credit hour: 60 minutes, rounded down to the nearest quarter hour.
Limit on credit hours for recorded programs: No limit. Attorneys can earn all CPD hours via recorded programs so long as the program formats have an interactive component. ABA recorded product formats listed below are approved in Ontario.
Attendance Reporting Procedure: Attorneys must self-report completion of CPD requirements each reporting period through the online LSUC Portal. Neither the ABA nor attorneys send certificates of attendance to the Law Society of Upper Canada.
Approval of ABA Programs
The Law Society of Upper Canada only requires professionalism hours (experienced lawyers) and new lawyer CPD to be accredited and does not require substantive hours to be accredited. The ABA applies for accreditation of professionalism hours and new lawyer CPD for select programs on a program-by-program basis and is generally approved for the following formats
Approved ABA Live Program Formats
Live, in-person meetings (e.g., National Institutes)
Live Webinars and Teleconferences
Approved ABA CLE Product Formats
On-Demand Online courses
Recorded audio/video programs are approved for a one-year period from the original production/recording date. Interactivity is required for recorded product use.
Contact Information
The Law Society of Upper Canada
Osgoode Hall, 130 Queen Street West
Toronto, Ontario M5H 2N6
(416) 947-3315 / (800) 668-7380
E-mail
Website
A Note About MCLE Credit
The content on this page is for informational and educational purposes only. Each state has its own rules and regulations indicating what qualifies for CLE credit. Certain programs, subjects, and formats may not receive credit in some states and there may be specific rules regarding who may earn credit or the maximum number of credit hours that may be earned with specific formats. Please contact your state MCLE regulatory entity for specific questions about your MCLE rules.