What qualifies as CPD hours?
A CPD hour is every hour a practitioner actively engages in an activity relevant to their immediate or long-term professional development. One (1) hour of CPD learning represents one (1) point. Every year, Australian lawyers are required to complete a minimum of 10 CPD hours between 1 April and 31 March to renew their practising certificate. For Tasmanian lawyers, the CPD year runs from 1 May to 30 April.
There are several types of activities lawyers can engage in to complete their CPD hours. Here are some examples of what counts as CPD activities:
- Completing on-demand interactive courses
- Attending face-to-face legal seminars
- Join online legal conferences
- Attending lectures, participating in educational programs or discussion groups
- Accessing on-demand audio or video recordings of legal seminars and conferences online
- Preparing and presenting at legal seminars, conferences and other CPD activities.
It's important to remember that each state and territory has its own CPD rules as to what is an approved CPD activity and how many points you can claim for doing a particular activity. So when you start planning your CPD, always read up on the CPD rules in your jurisdiction. Check out our state-by-state guide to ensure you're up to date with your state or territory requirements.
Lawyers in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory can earn unlimited CPD points by completing LawCPD's online legal CPD courses. Lawyers in South Australia and Tasmania can earn up to 5 CPD points annually by completing LawCPD's online legal CPD courses.