Members' Guide to The Law Society of Singapore's Voluntary Minimum Continuing Professional Development Scheme (“vMCPD”)
(Version issued 17 February 2005; updated 24 December 2007)

There are no mandatory standards or reporting requirements to be met by members during vMCPD. However, based on its study of the CPD practices and trends in jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Australia and Hong Kong, the CPD Committee recommends that, regardless of area of practice or seniority, the Society’s practitioner members adhere to the following vMCPD Best Practice Guidelines:
 

1.	Each practitioner member should take personal responsibility for planning his/her own CPD using the 4-step training cycle of planning, acting, practising and evaluating suggested by the Society.
2.	Each legal practitioner should attend at least 10 hours of Approved vMCPD Programs per practice year (i.e. 1 April to 31 March). Approved vMCPD Programs are formal CPD activities, such as seminars, lectures, workshops and discussion groups ,which are either:
	a.	Organised by the Society and awarded CPD Hours for the purposes of vMCPD;
	b.	Organised by Approved Training Providers and notified to the Society for the purposes of vMCPD; or
	c.	Approved Training Courses organised by an external training provider for the purposes of vMCPD.
3.	Each Approved vMCPD Program should be of a minimum duration of 1 hour, excluding all breaks.
4.	Each practitioner member should maintain his/her own comprehensive training record for the practice year and retain copies of their training records for a period of 3 years.
5.	CPD Hours for participation in Approved vMCPD Programs are computed as follows:     TYPE OF PARTICIPATION COMPUTATION OF CPD HOURS 1. Attending Approved vMCPD Programs 1 CPD Hour for each 1 hour duration (excluding all breaks) 2. Chairing Approved vMCPD Programs 1 CPD Hour for each 1 hour duration (excluding all breaks) 3. Speaking, teaching, training, facilitating or presenting at Approved vMCPD Programs 2 CPD Hours for each 1 hour duration (excluding all breaks) for the 1st time the event is presented. For repeated presentations, CPD Hours will be awarded only if it can be demonstrated that the content has been substantially changed and such change required additional research, study or preparation by the presenter. 4. Preparation of presentation materials and handouts for Approved vMCPD Programs 1 CPD Hour for each 1 hour duration (excluding all breaks), provided the speaker has confirmed to the Training Department in writing the practitioner member’s involvement in such preparation work.

Members are encouraged to use PORT as it is the most convenient and comprehensive way of keeping a record of their training history.

This pilot or trial run is all about how the Society can better add value to the profession in the form of an enhanced CPD scheme.


In essence, the Society will embark on a comprehensive exercise to:

1.	gather information that would assist the Society in making decisions about the structure and requirements of a full-scale MCPD scheme for the profession;
2.	obtain feedback from members about the relevance, benefits and concerns regarding a full-scale mandatory MCPD scheme; and
3.	continue monitoring the developments locally and overseas.

In deciding to implement vMCPD, the Society is conscious that there has been a trend over the past few decades in jurisdictions such as the United States of America, United Kingdom, Australia, Hong Kong and even Malaysia to go beyond merely recognising and espousing the importance of CPD. These jurisdictions have moved towards or implemented some form of mandatory or minimum CPD requirements for lawyers. In Singapore, many other professions have made CPD mandatory.

Others, such as certified internal auditors, general insurance front end operatives and life insurance representatives/supervisors, also have some form of MCPD requirements.

In view of such global and local trends, the Society feels strongly that the legal profession in Singapore should seriously consider the need for and benefits of introducing some form of MCPD. Hence, vMCPD.

In most of the developed countries we studied, the legal profession has already embraced some form of minimum or mandatory continuing professional development requirements which mandate the attaining of a prescribed minimum number of CPD points for renewal of the licence to practice law. A table summarising our findings is set out below.

Most professions in Singapore have already embraced some form of minimum or mandatory continuing professional development requirements. A table summarising our findings is set out below.



Others such as certified internal auditors, general insurance front end operatives and life insurance representatives /supervisors also have some form of MCPD requirements.

The key objectives of vMCPD are:

1.	to provide critical data and information for the development of a framework for a mandatory MCPD scheme; and
2.	to enable the Society and the profession to gradually gear up and prepare for such a mandatory MCPD scheme.

During vMCPD, the Society will assign CPD Hours to all Approved vMCPD Programs (see Q10 below) as follows:
 

TYPE OF PARTICIPATION	COMPUTATION OF CPD HOURS
Attending Approved vMCPD Programs	1 CPD Hour for each 1 hour duration (excluding all breaks)
Chairing Approved vMCPD Programs	1 CPD Hour for each 1 hour duration (excluding all breaks)
Speaking, teaching, training, facilitating or presenting at Approved vMCPD Programs	2 CPD Hours for each 1 hour duration (excluding all breaks) for the 1st time the event is presented.
Preparation of presentation materials and handouts for Approved vMCPD Programs	For repeated presentations, CPD Hours will be awarded only if it can be demonstrated that the content has been substantially changed and such change required additional research, study or preparation by the presenter. 1 CPD Hour for each 1 hour duration (excluding all breaks), provided the speaker has confirmed to the Training Department in writing the practitioner member’s involvement in such preparation work.

CPD Hours will be awarded for all Approved vMCPD Programs, i.e. formal CPD activities such as seminars, lectures, workshops and discussion groups which are either:
 

a.	Organised by the Society and awarded CPD Hours for the purposes of vMCPD;
b.	Organised by Approved Training Providers and notified to the Society for the purposes of vMCPD; or
c.	Approved Training Courses organised by an external training provider for the purposes of vMCPD.

For more details about Approved Training Providers and Approved Training Courses, please refer to the “Guide to The Law Society of Singapore’s Voluntary Minimum Continuing Professional Development Scheme for External Training Providers”. A current list of all Approved Training Providers and Approved Training Courses may also be found at the Society’s CPD website.

You are encouraged to use PORT as it is the most convenient and comprehensive way of keeping a record of your training history.