

Hillary Clinton’s Arkansas law license has been reinstated after 17 years of suspension. No word as yet on the significance of that.

A recent routine notice of reinstatements and suspensions by the Arkansas Continuing Legal Education Board said Clinton was one of several lawyers reinstated by the board at a meeting March 4 after payment of a reinstatement fee. Another familiar name on the list was that of Rodney Slater, Transportation secretary during the Clinton administration. He was reinstated March 5.

Clinton’s license was suspended in March 2002 for failure to complete continuing education requirements. Having been admitted to the bar more than 40 years ago (she was admitted to the Arkansas bar in October 1973) and also being older than 70, she’s no longer required under Arkansas rules to meet CLE requirements.

Clinton was a partner in the Rose Law Firm when Bill Clinton ran for president. She’s stayed busy since, but not as a practicing lawyer. Her last appearance of record in an Arkansas court was in May 1992, a civil case before the Arkansas Court of Appeals.


Bill Clinton’s law license was suspended for five years in 2001 as an agreed settlement of disciplinary action over his misleading testimony about Monica Lewinsky in depositions taken in a lawsuit against him by Paula Jones. He has not sought reinstatement.

I’ve directed a question about the reinstatement to a Clinton spokesman, but have received no response. She’s been quoted recently as saying she has no plans to run for president again in 2020.