Washington CLE Requirements: Credits, Reporting, and Fees

Washington CLE requirements are set by Admission and Practice Rule 11: every active lawyer must complete 45 approved continuing legal education credits during each three-year reporting period, including at least 15 credits in law and legal procedure and at least 6 in ethics and professional responsibility. Credits are due by December 31 of the final year in your period, and you must certify them to the Washington State Bar Association by February 1 of the following year.¹

What the 45 Credits Have to Cover

The 45-credit total has two mandatory minimums baked into it, with the rest open to your choice of approved subjects.¹

At least 15 credits in law and legal procedure, covering substantive law, legal research, writing, analysis, and related skills.
At least 6 credits in ethics and professional responsibility. One of those 6 must specifically address equity, inclusion, and the mitigation of bias in the legal profession.
The remaining 24 credits can come from any approved category, including professional development, personal development and mental health, office management, or courses aimed at improving the legal system.

One credit equals 60 minutes of approved activity, rounded to the nearest quarter hour. You cannot claim more than eight credits in a single calendar day, and the same identical activity cannot be counted twice within the same reporting period.¹

Which Reporting Period You’re In

The WSBA assigns every attorney to one of three reporting groups on staggered three-year cycles:

Group 1: 2024–2026
Group 2: 2025–2027
Group 3: 2023–2025

The deadline mechanics are the same for every group. All 45 credits must be earned by December 31 of your final year, and certification is due February 1 of the next year.² A Group 3 attorney, for instance, has to finish credits by December 31, 2025, and certify them by February 1, 2026.

Ways to Earn Credits

Washington dropped its live-credit requirement in 2016, so all 45 credits can come from recorded courses if that fits your schedule. The approved formats go well beyond classroom seminars.¹

Live and recorded courses from approved sponsors, whether in person, by webinar, or on demand.
Teaching an approved CLE course or a law school class, with preparation time qualifying separately.
Publishing legal scholarship or practice-oriented articles through the WSBA’s approved process.
Pro bono legal services provided through a qualified legal services provider as defined in APR 1.
Participation in an approved structured mentorship program, which earns one credit per 60 minutes of mentoring meetings. Mentors and mentees can both earn credit, but mentorship hours cannot count toward the 15-credit law and legal procedure minimum.³

Carryover Credits

If you earn more than 45 credits in a reporting period, up to 15 excess credits roll forward into your next cycle. Only 2 of those carryover credits can be in ethics and professional responsibility. Equity credits earned beyond the one-credit minimum carry over as ethics credits, but you still have to earn a fresh equity credit each new reporting period.¹

Carryover gives you a cushion if you front-load credits or hit a conference-heavy year. It does not reduce the mandatory minimums. You still need 15 law and legal procedure credits and 6 ethics credits earned within or carried into each period.

Reporting Your Credits to the WSBA

Many CLE sponsors report attendance directly to the WSBA, but don’t assume yours did. The WSBA tells attorneys to allow sponsors up to 30 days to submit attendance records.⁴ If credits haven’t appeared after that window, or if you earned credits through self-study, writing, or pro bono work, you’ll need to enter them yourself.

To report credits manually, sign in to the MCLE system at mcle.wsba.org with your myWSBA credentials and click “Add Credit” on the dashboard. You’ll need the Activity ID, a seven-digit code starting with 1 or 2. Sponsors label it differently (course number, approval code, jurisdiction activity code) but it’s the same number. Enter the sponsor, your participation date, and the credit breakdown by category.⁵

An MCLE analyst then reviews the entry. Expect that review to take up to two weeks. You’ll get an email when the activity is approved, denied, or flagged for more information.⁵ Keep certificates and records of participation for every activity. If the bar audits your transcript, you’ll need the documentation.

Late Fees and Suspension

Missing the February 1 certification deadline triggers a $150 MCLE late fee, which increases by $300 for each consecutive late reporting period.⁶ The fee applies whether you were late completing credits or just late certifying them.

If you still haven’t complied after the deadline, the MCLE Board sends a pendency notice warning that suspension proceedings are underway. You then have 10 days to petition for an extension, request a waiver, or agree to a plan to cure the deficiency. Do nothing, and the Board reports your noncompliance to the Washington Supreme Court, which orders an automatic administrative suspension.⁷

While suspended, you cannot practice law, appear in court, or advise clients. Every day is lost income, and practicing while suspended creates malpractice exposure.

Getting Reinstated

Reinstatement after an MCLE suspension requires completing all deficient credits, paying every outstanding late fee, and filing proof of compliance with the WSBA. You’ll also owe any licensing fees that accrued during the suspension period.

Late fees stack across cycles. Miss two consecutive reporting periods and you’re looking at the initial $150 plus an additional $300 for the second period, on top of reinstatement fees and back licensing dues. The simplest way to avoid all of it is to log in to your MCLE dashboard at least once a year, confirm your transcript matches your records, and start earning credits early in the three-year cycle rather than racing the clock in the final year.

1
Washington State Courts. Washington APR 11 – Mandatory Continuing Legal Education
2
Washington State Bar Association. What Is My MCLE Reporting Period?
3
Washington Legislature. Mandatory Continuing Legal Education – Standards for Approving Structured Mentoring Programs
4
Washington State Bar Association. The Licensed Legal Professional’s Guide to Getting Started with Mandatory Continuing Legal Education
5
Washington State Bar Association. Add Realtime or Recorded Activities – Licensed Legal Professionals
6
Washington State Bar Association. MCLE for Licensed Legal Professionals
7
Washington State Bar Association. Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board – Frequently Asked Questions