(A) Every superior court judge, including senior superior court judges, shall attend approved creditable judicial education programs or activities, totaling a minimum of twelve hours every year. At least one hour of the mandated twelve hours per year shall be devoted to the topic of legal or judicial ethics or legal or judicial professionalism. If a judge completes more than twelve hours for credit in any calender year, the excess credit shall be carried over and credited to the education requirements for the next succeeding year only. (B) Each new judge must attend the pertinent Institute of Continuing Judicial Education (ICJE) in state program of instruction for new judges or its locally administered individual new judge orientation course. Either activity must be attended as soon as possible after the judges election or appointment and, preferably, before hearing cases, but in any event, within one year after assuming office. Each new judge is also encouraged to attend a nationally based basic course for general jurisdiction trial judges. (C) Additionally, every judge is encouraged to attend national or regional specialty, graduate or advanced programs of judicial and legal education. (D) Qualifying creditable judicial education programs and activities shall include:
(1) Programs sponsored by the Institute of Continuing Judicial Education of Georgia; (2) Programs of continuing legal education accredited by the State Bar of Georgia’s Commission on Continuing Lawyer Competency, such as all Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE) programs; (3) Additional programs approved on behalf of the Council of Superior Court Judges by its Committee on Mandatory Continuing Judicial Education; (4) Courses at a Georgia based law school, whether for credit or not, that qualify an individual for a degree or to sit for the Georgia bar examination; (5) Teaching any of the above; (6) Service on the Judicial Qualifications Commission (JOC) or the State Bar Disciplinary Board for legal or judicial ethics or legal or judicial professionalism credit. (E) For teaching, the following credits shall be given:
(1) Three additional hours for each hour of instructional responsibility as a lecturer when no handout paper is prepared, and six hours for each hour of lecture when a handout paper is required. (2) Two hours for each hour as a panelist or mock trial judge. (3) When the same lecture or other instructional activity is repeated in a single calendar year, additional credit shall be given equivalent to the actual time spent.
