Purpose and Membership
The College recognizes Texas lawyers who voluntarily attend at least double the minimum Continuing Legal Education (CLE) classes required by the State Bar of Texas. While the State Bar of Texas mandates that every licensed attorney complete at least fifteen hours of continuing legal education classes each year, the College requires its members to double that number by attending thirty hours per year.
As of 2006, it was the only organization in the United States formed for the specific purpose of promoting and recognizing attorneys who strive to maintain and enhance their professional skills and the quality of their practice through voluntary participation in CLE programs. Historically, only about eight percent of the licensed attorneys in Texas (4,100 out of 63,500 in 1999) meet the requirements for membership in the College of the State Bar of Texas. The motto of the College is: "Professionalism Through Education."
Since 1993, the College of the State Bar has each year presented a lawyer with the Jim Bowmer Professionalism Award, an annual honor established to recognize members who have significantly contributed to professionalism within the legal community, as well as a Franklin Jones Best CLE Article Award and a Steve Condos Most CLE Hours Award.
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