come, CPD! The 1st of April sees the beginning of an era for New Zealand’s legal profession – the introduction of mandatory Continuing Professional Development. For a lot of lawyers, little will change. But all lawyers need to be aware of the new requirements.
W HAT IS A C P D P L A N & R E COR D (C P D P R) ? The CPDPR is the heart of your CPD activities. It is where you plan what activities you will do, record which activities you have done, and reflect on the outcomes and your learning needs. A CPDPR is a living, ongoing document – there is no start or end date – it forms a continuous record of your professional development, reviewed and amended over time. There is no prescribed format, you can use whatever system or platform you feel comfortable with. Your CPDPR should include: • your learning needs • an action plan • an activities record • reflections on outcomes • thoughts on future learning needs • verification of attendance
There is no set format a CPDPR must come in. However, if you are stuck for ideas on how to set yours up, there is a sample CPDPR for a lawyer in general practice, as well as an Excel template, available at www.lawsociety.org.nz/cpd.
Visit www.lawsociety.org.nz/cpd for more information and resources, including a sample CPDPR and a CPDPR template.
1 OCTOBER 2013 — 1 APRIL 2014 Transition Period. 5 hours CPD from this voluntary period can be carried forward. 1 APRIL 2014 — 31 MARCH 2015 First full year of CPD regime. 31 MARCH 2015 First annual declaration of compliance with CPD requirements due. LawTalk 838 · 28 March 2014 ·
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