LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (Aug. 11, 2025)—Registration is now open for the Central Arkansas Methodist Lawyers Conference, a free annual continuing legal education event sponsored by the Methodist Foundation for Arkansas. The day-long conference is set for Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, at Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church in Little Rock. Remote participation will also be available via Zoom.
Organizers have applied for the conference’s content to qualify for Continuing Legal Education credit through the Arkansas Supreme Court Office of Professional Programs. This paragraph will be updated when CLE credits are confirmed.
This year’s Little Rock gathering has a new name—adding the word “Central”—because the Foundation’s offerings are expanding to include a Northwest Arkansas Methodist Lawyers Conference in April 2026. The session topics in the Fayetteville-based program will be different from those offered in Little Rock, providing an additional source of CLE credit each year.
The 2025 Central Arkansas Methodist Lawyers Conference agenda includes:
9:00 a.m. – Welcome from the Foundation – Rev. J. Wayne Clark, MFA President & CEO
9:15 a.m. – Devotional – The Honorable Mark Leverett, State District Judge, District 31, Little Rock 3
9:30 a.m. – Harassment Issues and Best Practices – Stuart Jackson
10:30 a.m. – Break
11:00 a.m. – Legal Aspects of Planned Giving – Laura Dyer Johnson
12:00 p.m. – Lunch
12:45 p.m. – Policies Churches Should Have – Kandice Bell
1:45 p.m. – Break
2:00 p.m. – Handling Cases Before the Judicial Council – Bill Waddell, Member of the UMC Judicial Council
3:00 p.m. – Celebration of Holy Communion – Bishop Laura Merrill
“The Foundation is grateful to have solid relationships with a number of Arkansas attorneys and to be able to address some of their profession’s continuing education needs each year,” said President & CEO the Rev. J. Wayne Clark. “We look forward to the upcoming expansion of our conference series so those who use their legal expertise to serve churches can be as prepared as possible. In the meantime, we think this year’s Little Rock gathering will benefit all who attend. In fact, our staff will be sitting in on the day’s presentations so they can develop a better sense of the types of issues the churches we serve may face.”
