Be It Alcohol, Drugs or Apps – Addiction and Its Connection to Mental Health
MCLE Courses accredited by State Bar of California
Emotional & Social Intelligence for Lawyer Competence and Well-being
0.5 California MCLE participatory credits on Competence Issues
About BeiBei Song’s Continuing Legal Education courses for lawyers:
Applying the instructor’s neuroscience-based professional development and coaching expertise, along with insights from her legal background, our Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) courses address mental and physical health issues prevalent in the legal community due to the nature of the work and cultural environment of the profession.
They identify major mental disorders and their manifestations in the legal profession, which can impair decision-making, problem-solving, risk management, and general day-to-day functioning, making clients, people, and businesses vulnerable. These courses are approved for Competence Issues – one of the most in-demand MCLE subfield credits – and qualify for both Participatory and Self-study.
With BeiBei Song interactive video courses, you can fulfill your MCLE requirements from the comfort of your office or home at your own pace. We also offer live sessions from time to time to provide you with the opportunity to ask questions in real-time. In either case, you will receive a Certificate of Attendance upon completion of the course.
Below are select praises from lawyers who have taken our courses. More about State Bar of California MCLE requirements and Competence Issues special credit here.
E. Carlstrom, Esq
“We always talk about lawyer mental health but it’s usually with respect to substance abuse. I appreciated your focus on the underlying elements that may lead us to that.”
B. Carter, Esq.
“The program was very well presented with a great deal of very interesting and useful information. It was very helpful and a new method of approaching a topic that is very necessary to our profession.”
John R. Wierzbicki, Esq.
“Easily one of the best social and emotional intelligence training courses for professionals and lawyers available. BeiBei Song engagingly instructs on the science of emotional and social intelligence and provides tools to help change how we understand ourselves, and how we interact with others.”
Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) Requirements Established by the State Bar of California:
With a few exceptions, all attorneys who are actively practicing law in California must complete ongoing legal training referred to as Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE). Twenty-five hours of MCLE are required every three years.
These hours must include credits on ethics as well as competence issues, such as substance abuse and mental health. Total hours must now include no less than seven hours as follows:
At least four hours of legal ethics.
At least one hour on competence issues.
At least two hours of elimination of bias credit. Of the two hours, at least one hour must focus on implicit bias and the promotion of bias-reducing strategies.
Competence Issues Special Requirement for California MCLE:
Competence Issues topics refer to education that identifies and discusses the detection of substance abuse, mental illness, or other mental or physical issues that impairs an attorney’s ability to perform legal services with competence.
Our course as offered by legal professionals organizations:
Video introduction for the course in the Shelter-In-Place Institute program by California Lawyers Association IP Law Section, 2020
Types of MCLE Credit:
MCLE is classified under different categories, participatory or self-study credit. Under the requirements, at least half of the 25 MCLE hours you report must be activities known as “participatory.” Also, you cannot take more than 12.5 hours of credit in “self-study” activities.
Participatory credit
The provider can verify your participatory credit if:
- You sign in at the time of the activity (electronic sign-in is acceptable)
- The provider keeps a record of participants who signed in
- The provider issues a certificate of attendance to participants
Courses taken online or with the help of media such as CDs and tapes may also count towards participatory credit if the provider has been approved for it.
Self-study Credit
The MCLE rules specify that some types of activities qualify for self-study credit. They include:
- Studying online materials and taking an assessment test.
- Preparing written materials for a law book or legal course.
Compliance Reporting Requirements:
The following attorneys are subject to the MCLE education requirement and must report compliance:
Active attorneys
- Not Eligible attorneys, who are suspended for disciplinary reasons
- Retired attorneys whose status is listed as “active” are subject to the MCLE requirement, regardless of whether they are practicing law.
Audit requirements:
If your compliance with the MCLE requirement is audited, the following must be provided:
- The certificates of attendance given to you by providers;
- Your record of self-study activities includes, as appropriate, the title, provider, time spent in the activity, subject matter of the activity, and the date on which you engaged in the activity; and Proof of Exempt status, if applicable.
Maintain the records listed above for one year from the time compliance is reported.
