General Indiana Continuing Legal Education Credit Requirements
In Indiana, active status attorneys must complete a minimum of 6.00 CLE credits every year and a total of 36.00 CLE credits every 3 years to maintain good standing with the Indiana State Bar.
In addition, Indiana attorneys must complete 3.00 ethics credits in every 3-year educational period.
Mediator attorneys have two additional requirements every 3-year educational period:
- 6.00 - Civil Mediation
- 6.00 - Domestic Relations Mediation
Credit Hour: 60 minutes (rounded up to the 1/10 hour).
Ethics credits must relate directly to legal ethics or professional responsibility, including subjects such as attorney conduct, trust accounting, conflicts of interest, or duties to the court and clients. The Applied Professionalism course for new attorneys may fulfill this requirement in their first reporting period.
Indiana attorneys must complete and report all required CLE credits by December 31 (6.00 CLE credits annually and 36.00 CLE credits every 3-year cycle).
The educational period is 3 years. Your first educational period begins on January 1 after your admission to the Indiana State Bar and ends on December 31 of the third calendar year after admission. Keep in mind that you must complete 6.00 CLE credits every year.
NBI reports your credit to the Indiana Supreme Court Office of Admissions & Continuing Education.
On or before September 1 of each year, the Commission will send you a statement showing CLE credits reported to date. You may check your transcript online at the Indiana Courts Portal.
While NBI reports your CLE credits on your behalf, attorneys are responsible for verifying the accuracy of their records via the Indiana Courts Portal. The Commission sends annual statements before September 1 to help attorneys monitor their progress.
Failure to meet the annual 6.00 credit minimum may result in non-compliance with Indiana Bar Association CLE rules and could lead to disciplinary action. Even though the overall compliance period is 3 years, Indiana attorneys must complete at least 6.00 CLE hours each year.
If requirements are unmet by December 31, a $150 late fee is charged January 1. On May 1, non-compliant attorneys are referred to the Supreme Court for suspension. Reinstatement requires completing the deficiency plus additional credits and paying a reinstatement fee. NBI however can report your CLE credits accordingly.
Experienced attorneys can fulfill their Indiana CLE requirement by completing courses approved and accredited by the Indiana Supreme Court Office of Admissions & Continuing Education. Examples of accepted course formats include:
Live CLE
Distance Education
No. The Indiana MCLE rules do not permit excess CLE credits to be carried over.
There is no limit on the number of CLE credits you can earn through distance education courses.
Yes. Indiana allows attorneys to complete their CLE credits through accredited distance education, including live online sessions and OnDemand courses. There is no cap on the number of credits that can be earned through these formats.
Yes, but credit will only be awarded once per 3-year educational period for the same course content. If the program is substantially revised or updated, it may qualify for additional credit.
Yes. In-program attendance verification is required.
- State Contact Information:
- Address: Indiana Commission for CLE, 251 N. Illinois Street, Suite 550, Indianapolis, IN, 46204
- Phone Number: (317) 232-2552
- Website: https://www.in.gov/judiciary/ace/
- Indiana CLE FAQ, Applications, and Other Information
Are you newly admitted to the Indiana State Bar? Here’s what you need to know:
Newly admitted attorneys in Indiana must satisfy at least 36 total credit hours during their first 3-year educational period.
- Including 6.00 required hours from an Applied Professionalism Program for Newly Admitted Attorneys, which has been accredited by the Indiana Commission for Continuing Legal Education (in-person).
- The "Applied Professionalism" program counts in lieu of the 3.00 hour ethics requirement for an attorneys first 3-year educational period. See ISBA FAQs
Apart from the required live in person 6-hour Applied Professional Program, newly admitted attorneys can complete their remaining credit hours with a variety of course formats:
Live CLE
Distance Education
Your first reporting period begins on January 1 after your admission to the Indiana State Bar and ends on December 31 of the third calendar year after your admission.
No. CLE credits completed before January 1 following your admission do not count toward your CLE requirement. CLE tracking and compliance officially begin on that date. Note that Indiana attorneys can count a maximum of 12 hours of Non-Legal Subject Matter (NLS) credit toward their 36-hour, three-year Continuing Legal Education (CLE) requirement.
No. You are not in a reporting year until January 1 following admission to the Indiana State Bar, so you will not get credit for any CLEs completed before the beginning of your reporting year.
Yes. New Indiana attorneys must complete the Applied Professionalism Program for Newly Admitted Attorneys, which has been accredited by the Indiana Commission for Continuing Legal Education. These 6 credits must be taken as live, in-person courses.
This is a required 6.00-hour live, in-person program for newly admitted attorneys that covers key issues of ethics, civility, and professional conduct. Completion of this course satisfies the 3.00-hour ethics requirement for the first 3-year CLE period.
There is not a set time frame in which attorneys are considered newly admitted. It depends on their admission date.