Computational findings suggest valence p-orbitals on the metal participate in metal-ligand bonding, albeit weakly. However, Weinhold and Landis within the context of natural bond orbitals do not count the metal p-orbitals in metal-ligand bonding, although these orbitals are still included as polarization functions. This results in a duodectet (12-electron) rule for five d-orbitals and one s-orbital only.
The current consensus in the general chemistry community is that unlike the singular octet rule for main group elements, transition metals do not strictly obey either the 12-electron or 18-electron rule, but that the rules describe the lower bound and upper bound of valence electron count respectively. Thus, while transition metal d-orbital and s-orbital bonding readily occur, the involvement of the higher energy and more spatially diffuse p-orbitals in bonding depends on the central atom and coordination environment.