Substantive written materials handouts, presentations, slides, or other documents that provider meaningful written explanations of the topics and legal authorities covered in the program. They must do more than list agenda items or display primary sources; they should contain analysis, discussion, and practical guidance at a level that allows an attorney to use the materials as a stand-alone reference after the course. Materials consisting only of brief bullet point outlines, agendas, unannotated copies of cases, statutes, or regulations, or slide decks that are mainly pictures, charts, or a few large font bullet points without explanatory text are not considered substantive.
What activities qualify for general MCLE credit?
Activities that qualify for general MCLE credit must: (1) relate to legal subjects that are directly relevant to California attorneys, and (2) offer current, significant educational, professional, or practical content with the specific objective of increasing each participant’s professional competency as an attorney. Programs created primarily for nonattorney audiences (for example, general public, clients, or business staff) do not qualify and will not be approved for general MCLE credit. More on Standards for MCLE activity Approval.
Are there separate Certificates of Attendance for speakers?
No. Except for the credit hours awarded, the certificate is the same for both speakers and nonspeakers.
Can a speaker receive credit as an attendee?
The speaker should receive credit for their attendance time less their speaking time. As an example, a speaker who speaks for 15 minutes during a 1-hour program would only be eligible for 45 minutes of attendance credit (i.e., 60 minutes of program time minus 15 minutes of speaking time = 45 minutes or 0.75 hours).
How are speaker credit hours calculated?
Regardless of the time increment, the speaker should be awarded their actual speaking time multiplied by four. For example, a speaker who speaks for 15 minutes would receive 1 hour of speaking credit (i.e., 0.25 hours x 4 = 1.00 hour speaking credit). Additionally, the speaker credit should be rounded to the nearest quarter-hour if necessary. For example, a speaker who speaks for 10 minutes should receive 45 minutes of speaking credit (i.e., 10 minutes x 4 rounded up to the nearest quarter-hour = 45 minutes or 0.75 hours).
Please note: Speaker credit should only be granted for the first presentation of a program. Speakers who repeat the same presentation should only receive attendance credit for that presentation.
How does a provider track attendance for participatory activities?
Providers can use the State Bar’s Record of Attendance form, or its equivalent, to take attendance. In addition to the California licensee’s name, State Bar number, and signature, the form must include the following information:
• The title of the MCLE activity;
• Date of the MCLE activity; and
• Total hours awarded, including any credit hours or partial credit hours awarded for legal ethics, recognition and elimination of bias, implicit bias, competence issues, or legal specialization as a component of the activity.
I am an approved SAP, so why am I not listed on the website?
Only MAPs are listed on the State Bar’s website. A provider with MAP status is considered to have demonstrated a strong understanding of both the standards for approval of MCLE activities and their responsibilities as outlined in the MCLE provider rules, and therefore, activities held by these providers are presumed to be approved by the State Bar.
How long does the provider’s status remain effective once approved?
A SAP’s application/program is approved for a period of two years from the date of the activity. An approval for MAP status is granted for a period of two years.
What types of legal education providers are approved in California?
There are two types of approved providers in California: Single Activity Providers and Multiple Activity Providers. A Single Activity Provider (SAP) is an organization approved to hold and grant Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) or Legal Specialty Minimum Continuing Legal Education (LSMCLE) credit for a single MCLE or LSMCLE activity for a period of two years from the date of the activity, provided that no substantive changes are made to the program. A SAP must apply for and receive approval of the activity in accordance with the State Bar’s procedures and pay applicable fee(s). More on becoming a Single Activity Provider
A Multiple Activity Provider (MAP) is an organization approved to hold and grant credit for any MCLE or LSMCLE activity for two years after applying for and receiving approval of MAP status in accordance with State Bar procedures and paying the applicable fee(s). Providers approved for MAP status do not have to submit separate applications to request approval for each program offered. More on becoming a Multiple Activity Provider
What is the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation?
The Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation (JNE; JNE Commission), is an agency of the State Bar created by statute for the express purpose of evaluating judicial candidates nominated by the Governor. The language of the statute, Government Code section 12011.5, is mandatory. It provides that, prior to exercising their constitutional right to make judicial appointments, the Governor shall submit to JNE the names of all potential appointees or nominees for judicial office for evaluation of their judicial qualifications. The commission operates pursuant to rules and procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees of the State Bar.
2.2 Who is required to complete the CTAPP reporting requirements?
With very few exceptions (see FAQ 2.3 below), all licensees who held an active license status at ANY time during the reporting period must complete the CTAPP reporting requirements. For 2026, the reporting period is January 1–December 31, 2025. This includes those licensees whose status changed to voluntary inactive at any time during the reporting period.
2.10 I do not maintain my own trust account, but I work for a firm that has a trust account. How do I know if the firm trust account is maintained “on my behalf”?
Rule 1.15 requires attorneys who handle trust funds to hold those funds in one or more interest-bearing bank accounts labeled as a “Trust Account,” or words of similar import. If, at any point in the reporting period, you were responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions in rule 1.15—other than the disclosure and agreement requirements in rule 1.15(b) pertaining to depositing a flat fee paid in advance into a lawyer’s or law firm’s operating account—(e.g., responsibilities for the safekeeping of funds, identifying and discharging of liens, notifying clients that funds have been received, etc.), regardless of whether someone else ultimately performed this function, you are required to have a trust account. If the firm’s trust account(s) are available funds for the deposit of your client’s funds, then that trust account/those trust accounts are maintained, at least in part, on your behalf.
Therefore, if at any point in the reporting period, you were responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions in rule 1.15—other than the disclosure and agreement requirements in rule 1.15(b) pertaining to depositing a flat fee paid in advance into a lawyer’s or law firm’s operating account—you should answer, “Yes, a firm or organization I am currently employed by or in practice with …,” “Yes, however, I am no longer employed by or in practice with the firm or organization …,” or both to at least one of the questions in CTAPP Step 1 (Annual Client Trust Account Reporting) and thereafter complete the remaining CTAPP requirements. If your firm administrator will register the IOLTA and/or non-IOLTA account details on your behalf through the State Bar’s Agency Billing application, you may check the checkbox to indicate that in Step 2 (Account Registration).
If you have further questions about trust accounts, including whether you are responsible for complying with rule 1.15, whether you need a trust account, the rules of trust accounting, the recent changes to the rules regarding the safekeeping of funds, etc., please contact the State Bar’s Ethics Hotline research service at 800-238-4427 (toll-free in California). The Ethics Hotline cannot provide legal advice, nor tell you how to comply with any of the CTAPP requirements, including whether to answer “yes” or “no” in any portion of the CTAPP reporting requirements.
3.2.2 How do I choose which answer to select for questions 1 (IOLTAs) and 2 (non-IOLTAs) in Step 1?
If you answer “Yes” to the Screening Question indicating that you are responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions governing the safekeeping of funds of clients and other persons under rule 1.15 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct, you must maintain a trust account—or have one maintained on your behalf—to receive and hold the entrusted funds. Therefore, you must answer “Yes …” to at least one Step 1 question. The answer you choose depends on who will be registering the account with the State Bar.
For example, if you select “Yes, I will provide or update IOLTA/non-IOLTA account information, including the balance as of December 31, 2025, via My State Bar Profile …” in response to either question 1 and/or question 2, you must complete all CTAPP reporting requirements and register a corresponding IOLTA, non-IOLTA, or both, depending on the question(s) to which you select this answer, in Step 2 (Account Registration) in My State Bar Profile.
If you select “Yes, a firm or organization I am currently employed by or in practice with will provide or update the account information via Agency Billing, including the balance as of December 31, 2025” in response to either question 1 and/or question 2, you must complete all CTAPP reporting requirements. A firm or organization can only register a corresponding IOLTA, non-IOLTA, or both, depending on the question(s) to which you select this answer, via the State Bar’s Agency Billing platform. Regardless of whether you select this answer, it remains your responsibility to ensure that all necessary account details are registered, including the December 31 balance. You should be sure to confirm with your firm or organization administrator that they will register the required information via the State Bar’s Agency Billing platform by the deadline.
If you select “Yes, however, I am no longer employed by or in practice with the firm or organization. I understand that I am not required to register trust accounts that are maintained by a firm or organization that I am no longer employed by or in practice with as of December 31, 2025” and you did NOT also select any of the other “Yes …” answers, you do not have to register any accounts in Step 2 (Account Registration). You are not required to register accounts that are maintained by a firm or organization that you are no longer in practice with as of December 31, 2025. If there are no other accounts that you maintained or were maintained on your behalf, you may proceed to Step 3 (Self-Assessment).
You may choose as many “Yes” answers to the same question as are applicable to your situation. You may not simultaneously select a “Yes” and “No” answer to the same question. If you choose multiple “Yes” answers requiring trust account registration, you must have multiple trust accounts registered in Step 2. For example, if you choose “Yes, I will provide or update IOLTA account information, including the balance as of December 31, 2025, via My State Bar Profile …” and “Yes, a firm or organization I am currently employed by or in practice with will provide or update the IOLTA account information, including the balance as of December 31, 2025, via Agency Billing …” in response to question 1, you must have two IOLTA accounts registered in Step 2, one registered via My State Bar Profile and one registered via Agency Billing.
Your responses to questions 1 (IOLTA) and 2 (non-IOLTA) in Step 1 should never be “No …” and “No …” because you answered “Yes” to the Screening Question indicating that you were responsible for complying with any of the requirements or prohibitions governing the safekeeping of funds of clients and other persons under rule 1.15 of the California Rules of Professional Conduct.
Please see the tables, below, to see the Account Type and the Application Type (the application through which the account must be registered) (see Image 1) for each response to the Step 1 questions.
Image 1. My State Bar Profile Step 2 Account Registration Grid
Image
Step 1 Question 1 (IOLTA) Responses
Account Type Required in Step 2
Application Type (Registered Through)
“Yes, I will provide or update IOLTA (or similar pooled) account information, including the balance as of December 31, 2025, via My State Bar Profile …”
CA IOLTA or non-CA IOLTA
My State Bar Profile
“Yes, a firm or organization I am currently employed by or in practice with will provide or update IOLTA (or similar pooled) account information, including the balance as of December 31, 2025, via Agency Billing …”
CA IOLTA or non-CA IOLTA
Agency Billing
“Yes, however, I am no longer employed by or in practice with the firm or organization. I understand that I am not required to register trust accounts that are maintained by a firm or organization that I am no longer employed by or in practice with as of December 31, 2025.”
No account registration required.
-
“No, I did not maintain an IOLTA or similar pooled trust account in another jurisdiction, and no firm maintained one on my behalf, but I did maintain a non-IOLTA trust account or a non-IOLTA trust account was maintained on my behalf.”
No account registration required.
-
Step 1 Question 2 (Non-IOLTA) Responses
Account Type Required in Step 2
Application Type (Registered Through
“Yes, I will provide or update non-IOLTA account information, including the balance as of December 31, 2025, via My State Bar Profile …”
Non-IOLTA
My State Bar Profile
“Yes, a firm or organization I am currently employed by or in practice with will provide or update the non-IOLTA account information via Agency Billing …”
Non-IOLTA
Agency Billing
“Yes, however, I am no longer employed by or in practice with the firm or organization. I understand that I am not required to register trust accounts that are maintained by a firm or organization that I am no longer employed by or in practice with as of December 31, 2025.”
No account registration required.
-
“No, I did not maintain a non-IOLTA or similar trust account in another jurisdiction, and no firm maintained one on my behalf, but I did maintain an IOLTA or an IOLTA was maintained on my behalf.”
No account registration required.
-
3.4.1 Where can I see the questions I will be asked during the self-assessment?
How do I determine my total gross annual individual income?
Calculate your total gross annual individual income for 2024 using your 2024 W-2’s, 1099’s, and any other source of gross income that would be included in your 2024 federal tax return.
Gross individual income means all income from whatever source derived, including (but not limited to) the following items: wages, salaries, tips, interest, rents, social security, unemployment, disability, royalties, dividends, annuities, retirement distributions, pensions, etc. (exception: spouse’s wages and salaries, as noted above).
For example, when using the 2024 Form 1040, you may refer to Total Income on Line 9 to determine if you are eligible. If you use Schedule C to calculate profit or loss from your business, then the grossincome amount on line 7 would be included in yourtotal gross annual individual income.
Refer to the IRS Form 1040 instructions to determine what items are included in your Total Income on Line 9.
What happens if I settle through the Fresh Start Settlement Program?
You will be required to enter into a Settlement and Release of Claims Agreement with the State Bar and pay the full settlement amount either immediately in one lump sum or in installments by December 31, 2025. The State Bar will thereafter consider the eligible debt as itemized in the Fresh Start Settlement Program Platform paid in full for all purposes, including for purposes of return to active status or reinstatement to the practice of law. The State Bar will make no further effort to collect on the debt, including but not limited to, referral of debt to the Franchise Tax Board (FTB), credit reporting agencies, entry of a Superior Court money judgment, our pursing other legal action.
What can I expect when I go online to the Fresh Start Settlement Program website?
You will enter your State Bar Number and PIN, and you will see how much you owe the State Bar. Click “Settlement Offer” to receive an offer to settle your debt.
What's the benefit of paying the settlement in one lump-sum payment?
Paying the settlement all at once entitles you to an additional five percent reduction in the amount owed.
Why does the State Bar report debt to the Franchise Tax Board (FTB)?
The State Bar is authorized to participate in the FTB tax intercept program pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 6034. Section 6304 provides that the State Bar is authorized to participate in this program for the “collection of any unpaid amount owed to the State Bar of California, including any fine, penalty, assessment, cost, or reimbursement imposed under sections 6806.10, 6140.5c, and any other applicable law.”
The State Bar is also authorized to participate in the FTB Court Ordered Debt program pursuant to Revenue and Taxation Code section 19280 (as revised in January 2019). Revenue and Taxation Code section 19280 provides that the State Bar is authorized to participate in this program for “any amounts due pursuant to Section 6086.10 or 6140.5 of the Business and Professions Code.”
What does my organization have to do to participate?
An employer may participate in the program as either a committed participating employer or a seal recipient. To be recognized as a committed participating employer, an employer must commit to implementing at least five of the ten Action Items. Committed participating employers will have one year to implement the selected Action Items. The one-year implementation window starts when an employer’s application is approved. Once an employer implements at least five of the ten Action Items, it may be deemed a seal recipient.
Committed participating employers will be listed on the State Bar website. DEI Leadership Seal recipients will also be listed on the State Bar website and receive a seal that they can use on their web and print materials to signal their participation in the program to employees, job candidates, clients, and more.
Is participation in the DEI Leadership Seal Program required for employers with California attorneys?
No. The DEI Leadership Seal Program is voluntary.
How can my employer use the DEI Leadership Seal?
DEI Leadership Seal recipients can use the seal on their website and print materials, including on their career website and job postings, promotional materials to clients, email signatures, and more.
1.2 What are the CTAPP requirements?
CTAPP includes an annual reporting obligation that is required to be completed by almost all licensees. (See FAQ 2.2 for more information on who must comply and FAQ 2.3 for who is exempt from CTAPP.) During each billing cycle, licensees are required to complete:
Annual trust account registration (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 9.8.5(a)(1)(B));
Annual client trust account self-assessment (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 9.8.5(a)(2)(A)); and
Annual client trust account certification of compliance (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 9.8.5(a)(1)(A)).
Licensees must also submit a declaration saying the information they provided is true and correct.
CTAPP also includes:
Public education and client outreach regarding attorney responsibilities and the rights of clients;
Enhanced legal education on client trust account management for attorneys, such as the newly released Practical Trust Account Reconciliation course, which includes practical guidance on CTA recordkeeping and monthly reconciliations, and best practices guides;
Compliance reviews of selected lawyers by a certified public accountant to ensure adherence to client trust account management requirements; and
Where appropriate based on the results of the compliance reviews, investigative audits of the licensee’s trust accounts.
2.5 How do I know if I have completed my CTAPP reporting?
Your reporting is complete if:
You answered “no” to the CTAPP Screening Question and submitted your Final Declaration; or
You answered “yes” to the CTAPP Screening Question and:
Registered your trust accounts in Step 2 (Account Registration) or confirmed your firm registered your trust accounts on your behalf through Agency Billing and you or your firm updated the year-end account balance for all registered trust accounts;
Completed Step 3 (Self-Assessment);
Completed Step 4 (Annual Certification of Compliance); and
Submitted your Final Declaration.
You can verify your compliance status by logging in to My State Bar Profile and reviewing your Compliance Dashboard. Each box on the dashboard displays reminders related to each of your annual requirements, including your current CTAPP status. Click the blue button on the relevant tile to complete outstanding tasks.
If your individual reporting is complete, you can review your responses and determine if your firm has registered accounts on your behalf using the “View a Summary of your CTAPP Annual Reporting” link on the CTAPP Annual Reporting tile on the Compliance Dashboard page. You will not invalidate your declaration by reviewing this summary.
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