North Carolina Administrative Code › Title 27 - STATE BAR › Chapter 01 - RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE BAR › Subchapter D - RULES OF THE STANDING COMMITTEES OF THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE BAR › Section .2300 - CERTIFICATION STANDARDS FOR THE ESTATE PLANNING AND PROBATE LAW SPECIALTY › Section 01D .2306 - STANDARDS FOR CONTINUED CERTIFICATION AS A SPECIALIST

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 2, July 15, 2024
The period of certification is five years. Prior to the
					 expiration of the certification period, a certified specialist who desires
					 continued certification must apply for continued certification within the time
					 limit described in Rule .2306(d) below. No examination will be required for
					 continued certification. However, each applicant for continued certification as
					 a specialist shall comply with the specific requirements set forth below in
					 addition to any general standards required by the board of all applicants for
					 continued certification.
(a)
				  Substantial Involvement - The specialist must demonstrate that, for each of the
				  five years preceding application, he or she has had substantial involvement in
				  the specialty as defined in Rule .2305(b) of this subchapter; however, for the
				  purpose of continued certification as a specialist, service outside private
				  practice, during which the specialist had duties primarily in the areas of
				  estate planning, estate administration, and/or trust administration, may be
				  substituted for the equivalent years of experience toward the five-year
				  requirement, as determined by the board in its discretion.
(b) Continuing Legal Education - Since last
				  certified, a specialist must have earned no less than 120 hours of accredited
				  continuing legal education credits in estate planning and probate law. Of the
				  120 hours of CLE at least 75 hours shall be in estate planning and probate law
				  (provided, however, that 15 of the 75 hours may be in the related areas of
				  elder law, Medicaid planning, and guardianship), and the balance may be in the
				  related areas of taxation, business organizations, real property, family law,
				  elder law, Medicaid planning, and guardianship.
(c) Peer Review - The applicant must provide,
				  as references, the names of at least six lawyers or judges, all of whom are
				  licensed and currently in good standing to practice law in this state and
				  familiar with the competence and qualification of the applicant as a
				  specialist. For an application to be considered, completed peer reference forms
				  must be received from at least three of the references. All other requirements
				  relative to peer review set forth in Rule .2305(d) of this subchapter apply to
				  this standard.
(d) Time for
				  Application - Application for continued certification shall be made not more
				  than 180 days nor less than 90 days prior to the expiration of the prior period
				  of certification.
(e) Lapse of
				  Certification - Failure of a specialist to apply for continued certification in
				  a timely fashion will result in a lapse of certification. Following such lapse,
				  recertification will require compliance with all requirements of Rule .2305 of
				  this subchapter, including the examination.
(f) Suspension or Revocation of Certification
				  - If an applicant's certification has been suspended or revoked during the
				  period of certification, then the application shall be treated as if it were
				  for initial certification under Rule .2305 of this subchapter.
Authority
					 G.S.
					 84-23;
Readopted Effective
					 December 8, 1994;
Amendments Approved by the Supreme Court: October
					 9, 2008; April 5, 2018; March 27, 2019.