Academy’s Continuing Legal Education is a Distinct Achievement

The Academy is often known for its innovative practice building systems and cutting edge software. However, another unique characteristic of Academy Membership is our annual Continuing Legal Education (CLE) requirement. The Academy holds its legal education requirement for Membership to a very high standard. Not only are our Members cutting edge in their businesses, they are focused in keeping their education current and specific to their practice areas.

State bar CLE requirements vary state to state and can often be in any area of law, not necessarily specific to the attorneys’ core practice area, especially if that attorney practices in a variety of areas. That is where our Membership is different. One of the foundation standards of Academy Membership has been our long-standing 36-hour annual CLE requirement.

Each calendar year, Academy attorneys are required to submit a minimum of 36 hours of CLE specifically in the practice areas of estate planning, tax planning, probate law and/or elder law, including guardianships and Medicaid planning. This requirement can be obtained by attending live courses and self-study courses conducted by approved Continuing Legal Education providers, as well as by teaching courses and publishing books or articles on the required topic areas.

Once an attorney’s submitted hours are reviewed and approved for meeting the requirement, our public attorney listing is updated with “Academy CLE Requirement Met” for that attorney. If the attorney did not submit enough approved hours, the attorney listing will reflect

“Academy CLE Requirement Not Met.”

Estate and tax laws continuously change. On top of that, estate planning encompasses a number of complex laws and requires knowledge of many critical areas. So it is important for families looking for an estate planning attorney to seek out those attorneys whose practices not only focus primarily on estate and tax planning, but to also select an attorney who also places a high priority on continuing their legal education specifically in their chosen field. The education ensures Academy Members have the most current tax and estate planning knowledge possible, which we feel in turn, provides the client with the best possible advice available.

Susan Russel
Director of Member Services
American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
9444 Balboa Avenue, Suite 300
San Diego, California 92123
Phone: (800) 846-1555
www.aaepa.com