CLE

Join us from your home or office at noon on February 15^th for this thought-provoking webcast that offers a look at the prosecutor’s role in seeking justice – from both the practical and policy perspectives.

Under amended Supreme Court Rule 3.8 of Professional Conduct, prosecutors are required “to seek justice, not merely to convict.” In this program, an outstanding faculty of distinguished attorneys and scholars discuss duties under the current rule. They also discuss whether the rule should be amended to go further and impose a duty on prosecutors to seek out potential wrongful convictions. 

This eye-opening course serves as a challenge to all attorneys to remember that justice must be the goal and that anything less is a misuse of power. Topics include how to create an atmosphere that accepts the possibility of wrongful convictions; handling claims of innocence; prevention of wrongful convictions; making the “tough” calls that invariably arise in a prosecutor's office; a prosecutor's warning signs; how to recognize and acknowledge the “vested interests” that operate to view a conviction as an end in itself; and much more.

Click here for more information and to register.

The Illinois Supreme Court has amended some of the rules regarding Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) for Illinois attorneys.

Among other things, the changes will provide greater flexibility to newly admitted attorneys who need to complete their initial MCLE requirements and make it more attractive for them to participate in an approved mentoring program as part of their initial MCLE requirements.

The Court also eliminated a $20 fee which attorneys had been required to pay to claim credit for participation in non-traditional activities to meet the MCLE requirements.

The amended rules do not change the basic MCLE requirement that attorneys, other than newly admitted lawyers, earn 30 hours of CLE activity during two-year reporting periods beginning in 2012, and 24 hours of certified credit through the 2011 reporting period.

Previously, newly-admitted attorneys were required to take a 15-hour Basic Skills Course. New attorneys admitted after October 1, 2011 are still required to take a total of 15 hours of credit for their initial MCLE requirements but the amended rules give these attorneys more options to fulfill these requirements.  New attorneys need to participate in six hours of professional responsibility credit either by attending a six-hour Basic Skills Course or by participating in a mentoring program pre-approved by the Commission on Professionalism. The additional nine MCLE hours can be according to the new lawyer's choosing and may include professional responsibility credits.