McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP (“MBHB”) has been granted Accredited Continuing Legal Education (“CLE”) Provider status in Illinois by the Minimum Continuing Legal Education (”MCLE”) Board of the Supreme Court of Illinois. As an Accredited CLE provider, all of the firm’s CLE programs are presumptively approved for general credits. MBHB was retroactively granted this status as of January 1, 2012.
By way of background, when establishing the MCLE Rules, the Illinois Supreme Court created the MCLE Board of the Supreme Court of Illinois to administer the MCLE program. On September 29, 2005, the Supreme Court of Illinois ordered MCLE under Supreme Court Rules 790 through 798. With certain exceptions set forth under Rule 791(a), MCLE is required for “every attorney admitted to practice in the State of Illinois.” The rules cover the administration of the program for MCLE, what education is actually required and what programs can be accredited for such education.
Every Illinois attorney subject to the MCLE Rules is required to complete a certain number of hours each two-year reporting period (Rule 794). An attorney’s two-year reporting period depends on the first letter of the attorney’s last name as it appeared on the master roll of attorneys when the individual attorney was admitted to the Illinois bar. The CLE reporting period is broken down for attorneys with last names beginning A-M and, separately, N-Z. Beginning with the July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2012 two-year reporting period for attorneys with last names beginning A-M, and all two-year reporting periods thereafter, 30 CLE activity hours are required. Of these total hours, at least 6 must be in the area of professional responsibility, including professionalism, diversity issues, mental illness and addiction issues, civility, or legal ethics (Rule 794(d)(1)).
Different rules apply with respect to newly admitted attorneys (Rule 793).
“We are quite pleased with the decision of the Illinois MCLE Board to grant the status of Accredited CLE Provider in Illinois to McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP,” said Kimberly Yagelski, the firm’s recruiting director. “This development will allow us to further enhance our efforts at providing exemplary client service through the development of CLE programs for clients and friends of the firm, and through the ongoing education of our attorneys.”
More information regarding the Illinois MCLE program and related rules are available at www.mcleboard.org.
About McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP
McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP provides creative, pragmatic business solutions through a variety of intellectual property services, including litigation, prosecution, and general client counseling. With offices in Chicago, North Carolina and Washington state, MBHB provides comprehensive legal services to obtain and enforce their clients’ intellectual property rights, from navigating patent office procedures to litigating complex infringement actions. MBHB attorneys prosecute patent and trademark applications in both the U.S. and abroad, handle intellectual property litigation matters in trial and appellate courts across the country, and counsel clients nationwide and worldwide on the enforcement and defense of their intellectual property rights. MBHB attorneys are experienced in the procurement, licensing, enforcement, and defense of patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and unfair competition actions in a number of technological disciplines and product categories including biotechnology, business methods, chemical, electrical, mechanical and materials, pharmaceuticals and diagnostics, software and telecommunications. Comprised of over 75 attorneys, the law firm provides effective and service-oriented representation on a case-by-case basis. MBHB attorneys undertake each challenge with a full understanding of their client’s business plan and the ways in which the firm’s services help their clients reach their goals. Regardless of MBHB’s role, the firm never lose sight of their clients’ business objectives. MBHB clients know they have trusted their legal issues and plans for the future with knowledgeable, principled professionals who have their best business interests in mind. Website: www.mbhb.com.