The MCLE reporting period runs from November 1 to October 31. Review all MCLE deadlines here.

Newly admitted attorneys are exempt from the MCLE requirement for the reporting period in which they are licensed. Hours earned after your license date and prior to October 31 of that same year can be reported and hours may carry over to the next completion period. Example: if you are licensed between November 1, 2021 and October 31, 2022, your first MCLE completion period begins November 1, 2022 and hours must be completed by October 31, 2023.

CLE providers will issue a Certificate of Attendance (Form 2) upon completion of an approved program. Certify your attendance online at the VSB Portal or mail certificates to the MCLE office. If a sponsor does not supply the certification, you should contact the MCLE Department to see if the course is approved and to receive further instructions. Attorneys are encouraged to certify attendance as soon as possible and well before the December 15 reporting deadline.

Yes, active duty lawyers stationed outside of Virginia in a combat zone may seek relief under the SCRA for MCLE obligations by providing a copy of their orders to the VSB. Please contact the MCLE Department at (804) 775-0577 or [email protected] for specific requirements. (50 U.S.C. App. §§501-596, Public Law 108-189)

Contact the MCLE Department at (804) 775-0577 or [email protected].

No. Completion of the Professionalism Course is required only for active lawyers of the Virginia State Bar.

The course must be completed within 24 months* of becoming an active lawyer of the Virginia State Bar. For lawyers admitted by bar exam, this is usually two years from the time you register with the Virginia State Bar following notice of your licensure by the Virginia Board of Bar Examiners. Lawyers admitted by reciprocity or as Virginia corporate counsel must complete the course within two years of registering with the Virginia State Bar, following being sworn in by the Supreme Court of Virginia.

No. You must take the Virginia State Bar Harry L. Carrico Professionalism Course.

No. You must attend the course in person.

Yes. The Professionalism Course is approved for 5.0 hours of continuing legal education (including 5.0 ethics) credit in Virginia. CLE approval has not been sought in other states, although many states have given credit to individual attorneys. The 5.0 hours will count toward your annual requirement of 12.0 hours (including 2.0 ethics) as an active lawyer of the bar. The MCLE year begins November 1 each year.

No. Ethics or professionalism courses offered in other states will not satisfy this requirement, but they may count toward your annual MCLE requirement of 12.0 hours (including 2 ethics).

If you have not completed the course within 24 months of becoming an active lawyer, you will receive a notice of delinquency, and you will owe an additional $25 delinquency fee. If you do not take the course in the subsequent sixty days following the notice of delinquency, you will be administratively suspended from the practice of law in Virginia. You will not be reinstated as a lawyer in good standing until you have completed the course and paid the delinquency fee of $25, as well as an additional reinstatement fee of $75.

If you have an extenuating circumstance that you believe hinders you from attending the course, you may request an extension. Please be aware that extension requests are very rarely granted. Special exceptions are made for out-of-state law clerks and military personnel. These requests must be directed in writing to Maureen Stengel at Virginia State Bar, 1111 E. Main Street, Suite 700, Richmond, VA 23219, or by email. 

Email your request to change dates to [email protected]. If it is less than one week prior to your scheduled course, print out the registration form, and mail it in with a $25 check (made payable to the Virginia State Bar) for the re-registration fee.

No. There is no prescribed dress code for the course.

Yes, active duty Virginia lawyers stationed outside the state may be able to seek relief under the SCRA for Professionalism Course obligations by providing a copy of their orders to the VSB. Please contact [email protected] for specific requirements. (50 U.S.C. App. §§501-596, Public Law 108-189)

Lawyer Login [Top Right Link of the Bar Website]

Register with the bar (you’ll need your VSB ID number) for access to Fastcase legal research, check and certify your MCLE compliance information, edit your address of record, enroll in an online public directory, sign up for the VSB’s monthly email newsletter, and download forms, including dues renewal, Consumer Real Estate Settlement Protection Act compliance forms, and more.

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Virginia Lawyer Referral Service

An inexpensive resource to advertise a new law practice and expand an existing client base, the VLRS is also a way to educate the public about their rights and establish a new client-attorney relationship.

Pro Bono Information

This site includes free and nominal fee training opportunities for public interest lawyers and pro bono attorneys as well as volunteer opportunities, and contact information for Virginia’s legal aid societies and public defender offices.

Professional Guidelines and Rules of Professional Conduct

Be familiar with the Rules and Regulations governing the profession. Failure to adhere to the Rules will result in disciplinary action.

Free Confidential Malpractice Advice 

Free confidential risk management advice for new and seasoned Virginia lawyers with concerns or questions about the day-to-day practice of law, ranging from office sharing to appellate issues to malpractice claims, and everything in between.

Fee Dispute Resolution Program

Mediation and/or arbitration services are available to assist attorneys and their clients when they have disagreements over fees.

Virginia State Bar Publications

A full list of all available publications sorted by topic, and relevance to lawyers.

A Guide To Purchasing Lawyer’s Professional Liability Insurance In Virginia (pdf) 

This guide is presented by the Virginia State Bar's Special Committee on Lawyer Insurance to assist lawyers in purchasing professional liability insurance
The legal malpractice insurance market is complex and offers many different options for Virginia lawyers. Exercise caution and good judgment when you compare your options to make sure that you and your client are going to be protected if, and when, a claim is presented. 

Lawyers and Other People's Money: A Resource for Maintaining Trust Accounts

Sections

There are 20 practice sections in the Virginia State Bar. Section membership is open to all Virginia lawyers in good standing. Many sections also have law student and associate memberships. The sections are supported by dues that range from $10 to $35.

Conferences

There are four conferences in the Virginia State Bar. Conference membership is open to all Virginia lawyers meeting that conferences requirements. The conferences are Young Lawyers, Senior Lawyers, Diversity, and the Conference of Local and Specialty Bar Associations.

Young Lawyers Conference

All active and associate Virginia State Bar lawyers in good standing age 36 and under, as well as lawyers admitted to the Virginia State Bar as their initial bar for fewer than three years, are automatically members of the Young Lawyers Conference. The YLC is involved in several projects through which new Virginia lawyers can participate in the governance of the Virginia State Bar, serve the profession and the public, and enhance public awareness of the legal profession.

Conference of Local and Specialty Bar Associations (CLSBA)

There are more than 132 voluntary local and statewide bar associations in the state of Virginia representing various jurisdictions, practice types, and specialty groups. 

You may practice law once you have received a license by the Virginia Board of Bar Examiners, have paid the required dues to the VSB, and are an active member in good standing. See Va. Code §§54.1-3900 and 3910. Every person licensed by the Virginia Board of Bar Examiners or admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Virginia shall register with the Virginia State Bar within one year after licensure or admission if they intend to practice law in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Va. S. Ct. R., Part 6, §IV, ¶ 2(a). However, you may not appear in any court in the Commonwealth until you are "sworn in," i.e., administered the oath of qualification by the Supreme Court of Virginia or qualified by an individual court to practice only in that court. See Va. Code §54.1-3903. If you are not yet "sworn in," but are an active member in good standing of the VSB, you may engage in the practice of law but may not appear in court on behalf of a client. The admissions ceremony at the Supreme Court of Virginia qualifies you to practice in any court in the Commonwealth, but not any federal or bankruptcy courts sitting in Virginia. You must be separately admitted to the federal and bankruptcy courts. Note that the signing and filing of a pleading with a court is an appearance in that court and you must be admitted to practice in that court to do so.

Find this and more about legal ethics practice and the law on the Legal Ethics homepage.

Attorneys Liability Protection Society (ALPS)

ALPS is the Virginia State Bar-endorsed carrier of legal malpractice insurance.

Virginia Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program

Confidential, nondisciplinary help for lawyers, judges, and law students with substance abuse or mental health problems.

The Virginia State Bar Members Insurance Center

The Virginia State Bar Members Insurance Center is a full-service consultant for health and other insurance benefits focused solely on Virginia State Bar lawyers.

 Virginia's Judicial System

The official website for the Commonwealth's court systems. You can sign up for email alerts, file court documents, and search records.