What is the grace period for CLE reporting in Illinois?

You report CLE credits in Illinois by checking that your MCLE Board transcript reflects sufficient credits by the June 30 compliance date and by July 31, compliance is confirmed automatically without separate reporting.
Under Illinois’s new transcript-based system, once your transcript shows you are in compliance, no additional submission is required.

Overview of Illinois MCLE Reporting

Attorneys in Illinois are divided into two compliance groups (A–M and N–Z) and have alternating two-year reporting periods.
Each reporting period requires 30 hours of MCLE credit, including at least 6 hours of Professional Responsibility (PMCLE) — among which must be credits in diversity/inclusion and mental health/substance abuse.
Providers are obligated to report attorney attendance to the MCLE Board by the 15th of the following month after a course.
Illinois’s online transcript system serves as the compliance report: once your transcript shows you have met the requirement, the Board notifies you and no separate filing is necessary.
Attorneys may add qualifying out-of-state or nontraditional credits via the MCLE Board’s website (e.g. for teaching, authorship) and pay required fees.
Newly admitted attorneys have special requirements and deadlines under the NAA rules, which must be reported online via the MCLE Board system.

How to Ensure Reporting in Illinois

• Monitor your “My MCLE” transcript to verify credit entries and compliance status.
• Confirm that all Illinois-approved courses you completed are reported by the provider within the 15-day reporting window.
• If a course or credit is missing, submit a claim (for out-of-state or qualifying activity) through the MCLE Board’s “Add Credits” function and pay required fees.
• After June 30, check by July 31 whether your transcript records compliance — if so, the Board will register you as compliant and notify you.
• If you earned credits through Sprout Education, verify that those credits appear in your transcript (we submit attendance where permitted), but your compliance is validated only by your transcript status.

Key Takeaway: In Illinois, your MCLE transcript is your report — no separate form is required. Just ensure your credits appear in “My MCLE” by the July 31 deadline after June 30. Sprout Education supports your record with provider reporting where allowed, but your compliance depends on your transcript’s status.

No — Illinois does not impose a specific minimum for in-person classroom hours.

Illinois allows attorneys to satisfy the full MCLE requirement via any approved delivery method—including live webinars or recorded (on-demand) programs—so long as the course is accredited.

Details

• Illinois attorneys must complete 30 hours of MCLE in each two-year reporting period, including 6 hours of Professional Responsibility (ethics) credit.
• Accredited courses may be delivered in live in-person format, live via technology (webcast, teleconference), or as recorded (on-demand) materials.
• There is no rule reserving a portion of those 30 hours exclusively for in-person classroom instruction.
• Providers must apply for accreditation of each course (or operate as Accredited Providers) to ensure the course qualifies under Illinois MCLE rules.

Key Takeaway

Illinois allows full flexibility in format—webinars, live broadcasts, and recorded courses all count—without mandating any fixed number of in-person classroom hours.

Illinois attorneys must complete 30 CLE credit hours every two years. That includes at least 6 hours of professional responsibility credit, which must include 1 hour in diversity/inclusion and 1 hour in mental health/substance abuse.

Reporting Cycle & Deadlines

• Reporting periods run July 1 through June 30.
• Completion deadline: June 30 of the compliance year.
• Transcript (reporting) deadline: July 31 following the compliance year.

Credit & Subfield Requirements

• Total CLE: 30 hours every two years.
• Professional responsibility (PR): 6 hours (includes 1 hour diversity/inclusion + 1 hour mental health/substance abuse).
• Carryover: attorneys may carry over up to 10 credit hours (including PR) from the prior period.

Newly Admitted Attorney (NAA) Rules

• NAA must complete 15 hours in their first year (6 hours from basic skills or mentoring + 9 additional hours).
• NAA may carry over up to 15 hours (including PR) into first regular period.

Key Takeaway: Illinois requires 30 CLE hours every two years, including 6 hours of professional responsibility (with diversity and mental health subcomponents), and allows up to 10 hours carryover.

No — Illinois’s MCLE rules do not reduce or change CLE obligations based on whether an attorney practices part-time or full-time.

Illinois attorneys must complete 30 credit hours during each two-year reporting period, including (among those) 6 hours of professional responsibility (PR) credit (which in turn must include one hour in diversity/inclusion and one hour in mental health/addiction).

Details:

• The reporting cycle is July 1 through June 30 for each two-year period (Group A/M vs Group N/Z) and compliance must be reported by July 31 after the cycle end.
• Attorneys may carry over up to 10 credits (including PR credits) into the next reporting period.
• Newly admitted attorneys have special requirements (e.g. basic skills or mentoring plus added hours) for their first reporting period.
• Nontraditional credit options include part-time teaching of law courses (at law schools or colleges) subject to specific rules.

Key Takeaway: Illinois applies uniform MCLE requirements to all active attorneys — your status as part-time vs full-time does not alter the 30-credit, two-year obligation.

In Illinois, CLE credit counts for approved educational programming (live, recorded, webinars), teaching or presenting CLE, writing legal or professional articles, committee or bar service, and in some cases pro bono legal work.

These credits must satisfy Supreme Court Rule 795 standards; teaching credit includes both presentation and preparation time under a defined formula.

Details

• Rule 795 requires programs to have “significant intellectual, educational or practical content,” a qualified presenter, written materials, and proper learning environment.
• Teaching credit: total credit = actual presentation time + 6× preparation time; but you cannot claim attendance for the segment you teach.
• Credit from writing published articles or legal scholarship may be approved under Rule 795(d)(4)–(d)(9).
• Committee work and bar or court presentations qualify if they meet the content and delivery criteria.
• Out-of-state or technology-delivered CLE qualifies if accredited or previously approved, subject to Illinois rules.

Key Takeaway

In Illinois, CLE credit is earned through approved educational formats, teaching, writing, committee work, and out-of-state programs—each subject to Rule 795 accreditation, presentation, content, and reporting requirements.

Yes — Illinois allows carryover of CLE credits, up to 10 hours, including professional responsibility (PR) credits.

Under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 794 and MCLE Board practice, surplus credits from a two-year reporting period may be carried forward, within the specified cap.

Details & nuances

• The MCLE Board’s FAQ states: “you may carry over a maximum of 10 credit hours, including PR hours from the most recent reporting period.”
• When you earn CLE hours in a two-year period that satisfy both the general and PR requirements, any excess up to that 10-hour maximum may be applied to the next period.
• For newly admitted attorneys, a different carryover ceiling applies: you may carry over up to 15 hours, including up to 6 PR hours, earned between your admission date and the start of your first full two-year period.
• Beginning with the 2023-2025 and 2024-2026 cycles, the MCLE transcript system will automatically calculate and transfer eligible carryover credits.
• Carryover credits are only available from the immediately prior reporting period (not older ones) and cannot be claimed if credits were earned during a “grace period” applicable to the prior cycle.

Key Takeaway

Illinois permits carryover of unused MCLE credits — up to 10 hours generally, and up to 15 hours for newly admitted attorneys — but only from the immediately preceding cycle and subject to PR-credit rules.