Avoid online ripoffsThings to watch out for in an On-Line CLE course.  Avoid getting ripped off.

The internet has opened up a world of conveniences for attorneys seeking CLE courses. However, with innovation comes its share of charlatans looking to prey on the unsuspecting.  The old adage of "if it looks too good to be true, it probably is" applies.  If something seems ridiculously cheap, like Ethics credits for $10 a shot, or "All your CLE for $129," take a close look.

You should be very wary of sites that have no form of "verifier."  Many sites offer courses that were CLE approved in the live version, and the site has simply taken a tape of the event or a PDF of the materials and made it available on-line for a small fee, assuming that this is Okay with the State Bar.  It's usually not.

Most State Bar Associations will not authorize a site to issue on-line CLE credits unless they can verify that the participant has actually worked the material.  This can be done simply via several methods of technology based "verifiers" built into the site's code.

These are costly and in many cases sites don't install them.

As a result, you could pay for credits only to later discover that your State Bar Association has not authorized the course for on-line delivery.  Getting a refund will be impossible.  Many of these sites don't have email. Many also use PO boxes in Nevada as a physical address.

Here's a quick checklist of things to be aware of when shopping for an On-Line CLE course:

  • Are the credits offered vague? Example: "1.5 Credits" but no specificity of type of credit?  Beware.  They are probably only General or Participatory Credits, yet many courses have names like "Legal Ethics" or "Elimination of Bias" implying that they award the more elusive ethics credits.  They usually don't.

  • Are they vague about the State?  Some sites have great search engines that allow you to pick your state for purposes of finding the right course.  Others are a bit vague. Despite the fact that they ask for your state, this is to gather marketing information about you, and not necessarily a parameter for the course you're reading about.  Beware.  Read carefully. If you can't figure it out, it's probably market research.

  • For audio or video: If all you have to do is stream the content and there is no way for the site to know that you are actually listening, be wary.

  • The classic "verifier" techniques include things like an electronic checklist, or an interactive quiz that you must pass to receive credit. Where text pages are the only content, timers should be employed for each page.
  • The ability to download the audio/video content for keeps is a big red flag.  If the company doesn't care about protecting its content, how valuable can it be?
  • Never do business with a site that does not have a physical address, phone number and contact information.

Simply ask yourself the obvious question: "If the site can't know if I'm really working the material, how can the State certify that I've done it?