Institute of Continuing Legal Education

What Institute of Continuing Legal Education does

The Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE) is a Michigan-based, non-profit educational organization founded around 1959 and headquartered in Ann Arbor. It functions as the designated continuing legal education provider for the State Bar of Michigan and is institutionally supported by all five major Michigan law schools: the University of Michigan, Wayne State University, University of Detroit Mercy, Cooley Law School, and Michigan State University. ICLE serves the full population of Michigan legal practitioners across practice areas including civil litigation, criminal law, family law, estate planning, employment law, real property, and business law, with a stated focus on practical, Michigan-specific 'how-to' resources rather than purely academic content.

ICLE's product portfolio is organized around three core revenue streams: (1) the Premium and Basic Partnership subscriptions, which provide annual access to the full content library including online books, the Formbank, Clausebank, How-To Kits, Legal Updates, on-demand seminars, and the ICLE Community platform; (2) individual and bundled book sales covering Michigan-specific treatises and handbooks, available in print and searchable online formats; and (3) live and on-demand seminars held at venues across Michigan, plus structured Certificate Programs such as Essential Deposition Skills and Michigan Law Basics. The technology platform combines a self-serve web store, login-gated premium content delivery, the Higher Logic-hosted ICLE Community, and MI Law Online — a Michigan-specific legal research service that links books and forms to underlying caselaw, statutes, and court rules.

ICLE's go-to-market is sales-led, distributing primarily through its icle.org website and targeting individual attorneys and small-to-mid law firms. Marketing is conducted via organic social (Facebook, LinkedIn), email newsletters, and a contributor network of practicing Michigan lawyers. A multi-year content refresh pipeline (with new book editions scheduled through 2027) and a recently expanded No-Fault Summit (500+ attendees) indicate ongoing investment in the product surface. The organization operates with 11-50 employees, and leadership transitioned in mid-2026 with the appointment of Jeffrey E. Kirkey (formerly chief learning officer) as executive director.

Name

Institute of Continuing Legal Education

Legal name

Institute of Continuing Legal Education

Website

https://icle.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1959

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE) is a non-profit educational organization headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, that provides continuing legal education, practice resources, and online research tools to thousands of Michigan attorneys as the designated education provider for the State Bar of Michigan and five Michigan law schools.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Continuing Legal Education

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal & Compliance (CLE, Paralegal CE) (EDAAALAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Law School Continuing Legal Education (CLE) & Executive Programs (EDAHAIAH)

Keywords

• Continuing legal education
• Legal practice resources
• Michigan legal publishing
• CLE seminars
• Legal reference books

Headquarters

HQ city

Ann Arbor

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Partnership Subscriptions: ICLE offers Premium and Basic Partnership subscriptions providing access to the richest collection of Michigan-specific how-to resources, including online books, formbank, how-to kits, legal updates, community access, and more. The Partnership is available in tiered Basic and Premium versions with annual subscription billing.
2. Print and Online Books: ICLE publishes and sells Michigan legal practice handbooks in both print and online subscription formats. Books are available as one-time print purchases with optional subscription service for updates, or as annual online subscriptions with full search and update capabilities.
3. Seminars and Events: ICLE offers live seminars at various Michigan locations and on-demand seminars for CLE credit. Seminars are sold individually and may include electronic materials. Some seminars are cosponsored with State Bar sections.
4. Certificate Programs: Online training certificate programs such as Essential Deposition Skills and Michigan Law Basics, offered as structured training courses with hands-on exercises.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

ICLE is Michigan's designated continuing legal education provider, selling live and on-demand CLE seminars, Michigan-specific legal practice handbooks in print and searchable online formats, and a Premium/Basic Partnership subscription that bundles access to online books, the Formbank, How-To Kits, Legal Updates, the ICLE Community platform, and certificate training programs. Its customers are Michigan practicing lawyers and law firms seeking practical, jurisdiction-specific guidance, CLE credit, and time-saving reference content.

Product overview

ICLE provides continuing legal education and practical legal resources for Michigan lawyers through a multi-format platform. The core offerings include live and on-demand CLE seminars, print and online legal practice books covering all major Michigan practice areas (torts, family law, criminal law, probate, real property, business law), and the Premium Partnership subscription providing access to the complete resource library including the Formbank, Clausebank, How-To Kits, Legal Updates, and ICLE Community. Additional products include Certificate Programs for skills credentials, MI Law Online for primary law research, and SCAO Forms for court filings. The organization serves as the education provider for the State Bar of Michigan and five Michigan law schools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ICLE Seminars (Live and On-Demand) Live and on-demand CLE seminars presented by Michigan legal experts covering practice areas including civil litigation, criminal law, family law, no-fault, employment, and more, sold individually and sometimes co-sponsored with State Bar sections, designed to deliver Michigan CLE credit to practicing attorneys.
• ICLE Partnership (Premium and Basic) Subscription offering access to the complete collection of ICLE resources including online books, the Formbank, How-To Kits, legal updates, on-demand seminars, and the ICLE Community, available in tiered Basic and Premium versions with annual subscription billing.
• Online Books (ICLE) Fully searchable, continually updated digital versions of ICLE legal publications with links to Michigan caselaw, statutes, and court rules, available to Michigan lawyers as annual online subscriptions independent of the broader Partnership.
• ICLE Certificate Programs Multi-module online training certificate programs providing in-depth instruction in specific Michigan practice areas with assessments and credentials, offered as structured training courses with hands-on exercises (e.g., Essential Deposition Skills, Michigan Law Basics).
• MI Law Online Michigan legal research subscription providing access to Michigan cases, court rules, statutes, and subsequent case history tracking, designed for practicing attorneys conducting Michigan-specific legal research.
• Buying and Selling a Business in Michigan, Third Edition ICLE handbook covering the purchase, sale, or merger of a Michigan business across all stages of an acquisition, including comprehensive forms and explanations, written for Michigan business law practitioners.
• Advising Closely Held Businesses in Michigan, Second Edition ICLE's most comprehensive practice book on Michigan privately held companies, covering advising corporations and LLCs including planning, formation, dissolution, and comprehensive discussion of succession planning.
• Michigan Drunk Driving Law and Practice, Sixth Edition ICLE handbook covering everything needed to expertly handle drunk driving cases in Michigan, including breath and blood tests, evidentiary challenges, trial, sentencing, and license appeals.
• No-Fault Automobile Law and Practice in Michigan, Fourth Edition ICLE handbook covering first-party no-fault litigation, third-party automobile negligence cases, and uninsured/underinsured motorist actions for Michigan practitioners.
• SCAO Forms (State Court Administrative Office approved court forms) Complete set of State Court Administrative Office approved court forms in fillable PDF format for Michigan courts, available as a separate ICLE publication.

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• State Bar of MichigancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerICLE is the designated education provider for the State Bar of Michigan, providing official CLE programs and resources for Michigan attorneys. This is the primary institutional relationship that underpins ICLE's role in the Michigan legal community.
• University of Michigan Law SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of five Michigan law schools partnering with ICLE as an education provider, contributing expertise and credibility to ICLE's educational mission.
• Wayne State University Law SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of five Michigan law schools partnering with ICLE as an education provider.
• University of Detroit Mercy School of LawcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of five Michigan law schools partnering with ICLE as an education provider.
• Cooley Law SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of five Michigan law schools partnering with ICLE as an education provider.
• Michigan State University College of LawcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of five Michigan law schools partnering with ICLE as an education provider.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Practising Law Institute (PLI): PLI is a major national CLE and professional education provider offering live programs, on-demand courses, and treatises to practicing attorneys. Like ICLE, PLI monetizes practitioners through CLE programming, publications, and subscription bundles, and serves as the closest analogue to ICLE's business model at national scale.
• BARBRI: BARBRI is a leading provider of bar exam preparation and continuing legal education, offering live and on-demand CLE courses plus legal study resources. ICLE and BARBRI overlap directly in serving practicing attorneys through CLE subscriptions and seminar-based products, making BARBRI a direct competitor in the same product category.
• National Business Institute (NBI): NBI is a national CLE seminar and publishing provider offering live seminars, on-demand courses, and legal resource books across multiple practice areas. Like ICLE, NBI serves practicing attorneys through CLE programming and book publications, and competes for the same wallet share of practitioner education dollars.
• Lorman Education Services: Lorman is a national CLE and professional training provider offering live seminars, on-demand courses, and downloadable reference materials. Like ICLE, Lorman's core business is selling continuing education programming to licensed professionals, including attorneys, through a content-and-events model.

Regional players

• Continuing Education of the Bar (CEB) - California: CEB is California's State Bar-affiliated provider of CLE and practitioner publications, offering books, online resources, and seminars to California attorneys. CEB is the closest structural analogue to ICLE — a state-bar-affiliated CLE publisher — but serves California rather than Michigan, making it a regional rather than direct peer.

Broad incumbents

• West Academic Publishing: West Academic is a major legal publisher producing casebooks, treatises, and reference materials for law schools and practitioners. Like ICLE, West Academic monetizes legal content through book sales and subscriptions, but operates at national scale across all jurisdictions rather than specializing in Michigan-specific practitioner content.
• LexisNexis (Legal & Professional): LexisNexis offers legal research databases, treatises, and increasingly CLE programming to legal professionals via subscription platforms. ICLE's MI Law Online service competes with LexisNexis on Michigan-specific research, while LexisNexis's broader portfolio of legal content overlaps with ICLE's book and subscription products.
• Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory: Wolters Kluwer's legal division publishes treatises, practice guides, and compliance tools serving lawyers and legal departments across multiple jurisdictions. Like ICLE, Wolters Kluwer monetizes practitioner-grade content through subscriptions and book sales, but at significantly greater scale and with cross-state rather than state-specific focus.
• American Bar Association (ABA): The ABA offers CLE programming through its sections and conferences, publishes legal books, and provides member services to attorneys nationwide. Like ICLE, ABA monetizes practitioners via education and content, but serves a national membership across all states rather than specializing in a single jurisdiction.

Emerging players

• Quimbee: Quimbee provides online legal education, case summaries, and CLE courses through a digital subscription platform targeting law students and practicing attorneys. Like ICLE, Quimbee sells recurring legal education subscriptions, but focuses on law student and early-career audiences with national rather than state-specific content.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/LikeICLE
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/icle-michigan/about

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Institute of Continuing Legal Education