What Are the CLE Requirements for Louisiana Attorneys?
Louisiana requires lawyers under 65 to complete 12.5 hours of approved CLE every calendar year under Supreme Court Rule XXX, including at least 1 hour of legal ethics and 1 separate hour of professionalism.
Hours are earned by December 31 and reported by January 31; a lawyer under 65 may count only 4 as computer-based (online or recorded) courses.
Up to 8 excess hours carry forward.
A rule new for 2026 cuts the requirement to 5 hours a year for lawyers who turn 65 on or after January 1, 2026, until they reach 75.
Verify before you rely on this
At a glance
The Louisiana State Bar Association's Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Committee, which administers CLE under Louisiana Supreme Court Rule XXX.
12.5 hours of approved CLE each calendar year for lawyers under 65; from 2026, 5 hours a year until age 75 for lawyers who turn 65 on or after January 1, 2026.
The calendar year: hours are earned by December 31, and compliance records or exemption claims are due January 31 of the following year.
At least 1 hour of legal ethics and 1 separate hour of professionalism; our research found no bias, wellness or technology credit among Louisiana's CLE rules.
Lawyers under 65 may count no more than 4 hours a year of computer-based courses; the 5 hours required of lawyers who turn 65 on or after January 1, 2026 may all be online.
12.5 hours in the year of admission through the next calendar year, at least 8 of them in ethics, professionalism or law office management; the LSBA's Transition Into Practice program can satisfy it.
The rule text our research read includes a $150 late compliance fee, in a passage about revoked credits; the general late-fee schedule was not separately verified.
How many CLE hours does Louisiana require?
Louisiana lawyers under 65 must complete 12.5 hours of approved CLE each calendar year under Rule XXX of the Louisiana Supreme Court.
That total includes at least 1 hour of legal ethics and at least 1 hour of professionalism, which the rule sets as separate requirements.
A reduced track applies from 2026: lawyers who turn 65 on or after January 1, 2026 must complete 5 hours of approved CLE each year until they reach 75.
Lawyers who were already 65 before 2026, and all lawyers 75 and older, are exempt.
“Each Member under the age of 65 shall attend, or complete an approved substitute for attendance, a minimum of twelve and one half (12.5) hours of approved CLE each calendar year.”
What specialty credits are required (ethics, bias, wellness, tech)?
Louisiana's specialty credits are ethics and professionalism, and the rule keeps them separate: not less than 1 hour must concern legal ethics, and not less than 1 hour must concern professionalism, with professionalism in addition to ethics.
Beyond those two, our research found no bias, wellness or technology credit among Louisiana's CLE rules.
If you are planning a year's hours around a specialty credit, confirm the current credit list with the LSBA's Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Committee, because rules change.
“not less than one (1) of such hours shall concern legal ethics, and not less than one (1) of such hours shall concern professionalism.”
When is the deadline and how do you report?
Louisiana runs CLE on the calendar year.
Hours must be earned by December 31, and every member submits compliance records to the Committee no later than January 31 of the following calendar year; the same January 31 deadline covers exemption claims.
Our research did not establish the reporting mechanics — the form, portal or attestation step — or whether course providers report attendance on your behalf, so confirm how to file with the Committee.
“all Members shall submit to the Committee records pertaining to their compliance no later than January 31 of the following calendar year”
What are the rules for newly admitted attorneys?
Newly admitted Louisiana lawyers get a first-cycle requirement with heavier content rules: in the year of admission through the next calendar year, they must complete 12.5 hours of approved CLE, and not less than 8 of those hours must concern legal ethics, professionalism or law office management.
The Louisiana State Bar Association's Transition Into Practice program can satisfy this requirement.
Our research did not verify the program's details, so direct questions about it to the LSBA.
“attend twelve and one half (12.5) hours of approved CLE and not less than eight (8) of such hours shall concern legal ethics, professionalism, or law office management”
Can you complete CLE online or on demand?
Louisiana caps computer-based CLE rather than banning it.
For lawyers under 65, credit for computer-based courses — online or recorded formats — is limited to 4 hours a year against the 12.5-hour requirement, so the balance must be earned in other formats.
The reduced requirement for lawyers who turn 65 on or after January 1, 2026 works the other way: all 5 of their annual hours may be online.
Our research did not establish how individual courses are accredited by format, so check a course with its provider or the Committee before counting it.
“For Members under the age of 65, credit for attendance at such computer-based courses shall be limited to four (4) hours annually.”
Carryover and exemptions
Extra hours are not lost: up to 8 hours may be carried forward to another year in Louisiana.
The carryover does not extend to the required ethics or professionalism hours, which must be earned in the year they are due.
On exemptions, the rule our research read exempts members residing outside Louisiana who are not engaged in the practice of law in Louisiana.
Our research did not catalogue the rule's full exemption list, so confirm your circumstances with the Committee before assuming an exemption applies.
“In no event shall more than eight (8) hours be carried forward to another year.”
What happens if you miss the deadline?
Miss the January 31 reporting deadline and the rule text our research read includes a late compliance fee of $150.
Our research verified that figure in a passage about revoked credits but did not separately verify the full late-fee schedule or what follows continued noncompliance.
Direct questions about a late or delinquent compliance record to the Committee.
“then a late compliance fee of $150 will also be assessed”
What This Page Does, and Doesn’t, Cover
This page summarizes the Louisiana court rules, board and bar pages and other sources listed below, as read for this state-by-state CLE requirements series, current as of October 2026.
It is not a substitute for the instructions the Louisiana State Bar Association's Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Committee under Louisiana Supreme Court Rule XXX publishes.
For the rest of the picture in Louisiana, see bar admission rules in Louisiana.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many online CLE hours can Louisiana attorneys count?
Louisiana caps computer-based CLE: a lawyer under 65 may count no more than 4 hours of computer-based courses — online or recorded — toward the 12.5-hour annual requirement.
The reduced requirement for lawyers who turn 65 on or after January 1, 2026 is different: all 5 of their annual hours may be online.
Confirm a specific course's accreditation with its provider or the Committee.
Do senior Louisiana attorneys have to complete CLE?
It depends on when they turned 65.
Under the rule as it reads for 2026, lawyers who turn 65 on or after January 1, 2026 must complete 5 hours of approved CLE each year until they reach 75, and all of those hours may be online.
Lawyers who attained 65 before 2026 and every lawyer 75 or older are exempt.
Because this provision is new for 2026, confirm how it treats your situation with the Committee.
What is the late fee for Louisiana CLE?
The rule text our research read includes a late compliance fee of $150, in a passage about revoked credits.
Our research verified that figure in the rule text but did not separately verify the full late-fee schedule or what follows continued noncompliance, so confirm current fee amounts with the LSBA's Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Committee.
What is the LSBA Transition Into Practice program?
It is the Louisiana State Bar Association's transition program for newly admitted lawyers.
The CLE rule our research read says the program can satisfy the first-cycle requirement for new admittees — the 12.5 hours, at least 8 of them in ethics, professionalism or law office management, due in the year of admission through the next calendar year.
Our research did not verify program details such as enrollment or course content, so check with the LSBA.
Are ethics and professionalism separate Louisiana CLE credits?
Yes.
Louisiana's rule sets the two hours separately: at least 1 hour must concern legal ethics and at least 1 separate hour must concern professionalism, with professionalism in addition to ethics.
The rest of the 12.5-hour requirement is approved CLE, and up to 8 excess hours carry forward — but the required ethics and professionalism hours themselves do not carry over.
More Louisiana Resources
Sources
- Louisiana Supreme Court: Supreme Court Rule XXX (Mandatory Continuing Legal Education) (retrieved 2026-10-02)
Sourced from the documents listed above.
Verified October 2026.
This is career information, not legal advice.
Confirm current rules with the Louisiana State Bar Association's Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Committee under Louisiana Supreme Court Rule XXX.