How early can I report CLE credits in Mississippi?

Mississippi attorneys report CLE by submitting an Annual Report Statement to the Mississippi Commission on Continuing Legal Education by August 15 following the July 31 compliance deadline. Sponsors and providers may also submit attendance data, but the formal report is handled through the mailed or portal-based Annual Report.

Key Details:

• The compliance period ends July 31, and the report deadline is August 15.
• The Commission mails the Annual Report Statement to attorneys in June; attorneys add any missing credits and submit the final form.
• Attorneys retain their CLE certificates and logs in case of audit.

Key Takeaway: In Mississippi, CLE is reported via an Annual Report Statement due August 15, with the compliance period ending July 31.

You report CLE credits in Mississippi by completing the CLE Annual Report Statement and submitting it by August 15 following the July 31 deadline for earning hours.
You must ensure you have earned the required credits and that course attendance is properly recorded on your report.

Overview of Mississippi CLE Reporting

Mississippi attorneys must complete 12 CLE credits annually, including at least 1 credit in ethics or professional responsibility. At least 6 of the required credits must be earned via live, in-person programming. You must complete your CLE hours by July 31 each year. The CLE Commission mails you an Annual Report Statement; you complete and return it by August 15. If you have additional or missing credits, you can add them on the report when it is returned. Failure to report or correct deficiencies may lead to an Order to Show Cause and possible suspension proceedings.

Steps to Report CLE in Mississippi

• Complete 12 CLE credits (with ≥ 1 ethics) by July 31.
• Maintain certificates or attendance records for all programs.
• When you receive your CLE Annual Report Statement, fill in any unreported courses.
• Submit the signed report by August 15.
• If you earned credits through Sprout Education, confirm that your attendance was submitted (where allowed), and include those hours in your report submission.

Key Takeaway: In Mississippi, earn your 12 CLE credits by July 31, then submit your Annual Report Statement by August 15. Sprout Education supports your reporting where permissible, but you must certify your compliance and ensure proper documentation.

Yes — Mississippi allows carryover of CLE credits, but with limits and restrictions.

The Mississippi CLE Commission’s FAQ and Rule provisions permit up to 12 credits to be carried into the next reporting period; ethics credits carried over count only as general credits.

Details & nuances

• The Mississippi CLE FAQ notes: “12.00 CLE credits may be carried over to the next reporting period.” ([courts.ms.gov](https://courts.ms.gov/cle_bccr/clefaq.php))
• The FAQ further states that “Excess ethics/professionalism credits carry over as general CLE credits and do not satisfy the ethics/professionalism requirement for the following reporting period.” ([courts.ms.gov](https://courts.ms.gov/cle_bccr/clefaq.php))
• For newly admitted attorneys, additional CLE credits earned by the end of the second CLE year after admission may be carried over. ([nbi-sems.com](https://nbi-sems.com/pages/mississippiclerequirements?srsltid=AfmBOooSvrquIfrq2UUa1Jw83l3owIKSaIJ42tjVxii2WB0a1wIKSaIJ42tjVxii2WB0a1wIKSaIJ42tjVxii2WB0a), [lawline.com](https://www.lawline.com/requirements/cle/mississippi/newly-admitted))
• Mississippi’s CLE Rules (Regulations 3.3, 4.9, 4.10) reference carryover credits in the regulatory scheme. ([courts.ms.gov](https://courts.ms.gov/research/rules/msrulesofcourt/continuing_legal_education.pdf))
• The standard CLE requirement is 12 credits per year, including 1 in ethics/professionalism. ([courts.ms.gov](https://courts.ms.gov/cle_bccr/clefaq.php), [americanbar.org](https://www.americanbar.org/events-cle/mcle/jurisdiction/mississippi/))

Key Takeaway

Mississippi permits you to carry over up to 12 CLE credits into the next year, but carried ethics/professionalism credits count only as general credits — not toward the specific ethics requirement.

Yes — in Mississippi there is a limited distinction: part-time government attorneys may earn fewer hours via in-house programs.

Mississippi requires all nonexempt attorneys to complete 12 CLE “actual hours” per year, including 1 in ethics.

Details:

• A “part-time employee of a governmental department or agency” may count up to 6 hours per year earned through approved internal CLE offerings of that agency.
• A “full-time employee of a governmental department or agency” may count up to 12 hours per year via department-sponsored CLE.
• Apart from that narrow allowance, all attorneys still must satisfy the full 12-hour requirement and the regular rules on delivery, carryover, exemptions, etc.

Key Takeaway: Except for that narrow allowance for government employee internal CLE, Mississippi does not broadly reduce CLE obligations based on part-time vs full-time status.

Yes — judges in Mississippi are required to comply with Mandatory Continuing Judicial Education (CJE) rules, distinct from the CLE requirements for attorneys.

The state’s Rules and Regulations for Mandatory Continuing Judicial Education impose annual judicial credit minimums that apply in addition to attorney CLE rules.

Details

• The CJE rules require each judge to complete 12 hours of approved judicial education credit annually, including 1 hour in legal ethics / professional responsibility.
• Those rules are part of the “Mandatory Rules Governing Continuing Judicial Education” adopted by the Mississippi Supreme Court.
• For attorneys, Mississippi separately enforces a mandatory CLE requirement of 12 hours per year, including 1 hour in ethics / professionalism.
• Some judicial education duties for justice court judges are codified in statute: justice court judges must complete 24 hours of continuing education as part of their basic/continuing education program.
• The Mississippi Judicial College provides the infrastructure for training judges across court levels.

Key Takeaway

Judges in Mississippi must fulfill a separate continuing judicial education mandate (12 hours annually plus a specialized justice court requirement), in addition to whatever obligations apply under the attorney CLE rules.

In Mississippi, CLE credit counts when the activity is approved under the Rules and Regulations for Mandatory CLE—approved live programs, distance learning (within limits), teaching, writing, law-school courses, and service roles.

Each active attorney must complete 12 credit hours per calendar year, including at least 1 hour of ethics.

Qualified CLE activities

• Attendance at approved live in-person CLE programs.
• Distance learning (online, webinars, teleconferences, video replay) courses, subject to a 6-hour cap per year.
• Teaching or presenting approved CLE programs, with differing credit multipliers depending on depth of materials and format.
• Authorship of legal articles in recognized legal journals or law school publications.
• Enrollment in law school courses (ABA or AALS accredited), whether for credit or audit.
• Service roles: serving as a bar examiner, committee member (e.g. Ethics Committee), Supreme Court advisory committees, or grading bar exams, up to specified annual caps.

Limits, rules & special requirements

• Distance learning is capped at 6 hours per year (including the required ethics hour).
• Repeat presentations count for only half credit in the same calendar year.
• If a presenter is compensated (beyond reimbursement of necessary expenses), teaching credit is disallowed under certain rules.
• For newly admitted attorneys: they must complete a 12-hour “New Lawyer Program” (6 basic skills + 6 ethics/professionalism) by the second July 31 after admission; completion counts toward their first two years.
• Exemptions: attorneys over age 70, state/federal judges, nonpracticing licensees, nonresidents not practicing in Mississippi, and active military are exempt.
• Reporting: attorneys must report credits via the annual CLE report; noncompliance can lead to show-cause notices and potential suspension.

Key Takeaway: Approved live CLE, allowed distance learning (up to 6 hours), teaching, writing, law-school coursework, and limited service roles count toward Mississippi’s 12-credit requirement—subject to rules on caps, repeat credit, compensation limits, and exemption provisions.