The Florida Bar News, October 8, 2026

Every member must complete the two-credit-hour course titled “Professionalism Expectations: A Mandatory CLE for Members of The Florida Bar”

Not all professionalism CLEs are created equal.

Florida Bar members can take a course on professionalism and still fall short of their mandatory continuing legal education requirements if they haven’t completed the specific course approved to satisfy the professionalism requirement.

Under Rule 6-10.3 of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, every member must complete the two-credit-hour course titled “Professionalism Expectations: A Mandatory CLE for Members of The Florida Bar,” produced by The Florida Bar and approved by the Florida Supreme Court.

“We receive daily inquiries from members asking how to find this course, or frustrations because they took a professionalism course, but are learning they are now noncompliant or delinquent because the course they took did not meet the mandatory requirement,” said Maritza M. McGill, director of Legal Specialization and Education.

“Many members are deemed noncompliant or delinquent each month because they have not completed this single requirement,” McGill said. “For instance, we currently have 66 members noncompliant for the cycle ending September 30 because they are missing the mandatory professionalism course credits.”

Where to Find the Course

The current course, “2026 Professionalism Expectations: A Mandatory CLE for Members of The Florida Bar“(Course No. 9736), is available free online and is approved for two CLE credits, both of which may be applied toward the professionalism requirement. Its approval expires September 30, 2027.

Members can access the course through a blue information box on the Bar’s CLE webpage or the Henry Latimer Center for Professionalism webpage. The course also is available through the Practice Resource Center’s LegalFuel Free CLE page.

Members should make sure they complete the approved course rather than assume another professionalism-related program will satisfy the mandatory requirement, McGill said.

A requirement for every member

Florida Bar members must complete at least 30 hours of approved continuing legal education every three years. At least three of those hours must be in approved technology programs, and at least five must be in approved legal ethics, professionalism, substance abuse, or mental health and wellness programs.

As part of those five hours, members must complete the two-credit-hour Florida Legal Professionalism course produced by The Florida Bar and approved by the Florida Supreme Court during each reporting cycle.

The Bar has offered updated versions of the course annually. Attendance figures are:

• 2026 course: 12,255 attendees; approval expires September 30, 2027.

• 2025 course: 32,095 attendees; approval expired July 31, 2026.

• 2024 course: 51,529 attendees; approval expired July 31, 2025.

Members who have not completed the professionalism requirement should visit one of the Bar’s online resources to access the current course and check their CLE compliance.

VIEWS AND CONCLUSIONS EXPRESSED IN ARTICLES HEREIN ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS AND NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF FLORIDA BAR STAFF, OFFICIALS, OR BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FLORIDA BAR.