Areas of Practice

Special Education

We have over 30 years of combined experience representing local education agencies in the area of special education. Our attorneys provide legal support and training to staff, attend IEP meetings when needed, and represent clients before the Office of Administrative Hearings, California Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, and other venues. Our team is focused on legal compliance relative to the assessment and IEP process, to best support school staff in addressing the needs of their students. We stay vigilant with changes in the law, and trending topics, to provide clients with the most effective representation.

Section 504

Our team has assisted school districts in understanding their legal obligations under Section 504, and has handled 504 grievances, all the way to the 504 hearing process.

Student Matters

Our attorneys have handled a variety of student matters, including free speech issues, student discipline, records requests, challenges to records, search and seizure, student truancy, and many other matters.

Title IX

We are experienced assisting school districts in the area of Title IX, which has become a growing area of need. From trainings, to investigations, to developing policies and practices that are legally compliance, our team is dedicated to meeting your needs.

Litigation

Our attorneys have represented clients in federal court, state court, and administrative hearings, as well as other forums. When needed. We provide effective legal representation in due process hearings under the IDEA and Section 504, and have a track record of successful outcomes.

We recognize that the cost of litigation is not only measured in dollars, but also in hours, as well as the impact to the operations of an educational agency. When assisting clients in all phases of litigation, our advice is practical and considerate of the demands placed on school administrators and staff. We work collaboratively with school districts to provide support tailored to school districts of all sizes and needs.

Our team has achieved a distinguished record defending public agencies in litigation, with selected recent results including:

Establishing that California state courts are not the proper venue for attorney fee claims under the IDEA.
Obtaining OAH orders requiring an opposing counsel to reimburse over ten thousand dollars to a local school district, for legal fees incurred in defending them against frivolous conduct in litigation.
Complete prevailing party status and success in our most recent OAH matters, including:
- OAH Case No. 2022070237 & 2022060890: ALJ determined that Student did not require residential placement, and the school district’s offered placement in a SDC was appropriate.
- OAH Case No. 2022091016: ALJ found that the district offered an appropriate SDC program for a student with Autism, where the parent sought a less restrictive program.
- OAH Case No. 2022080550: ALJ ruled that the district correctly placed a learning-disabled student on diploma track, and the supports in the student’s IEP were effective.
- OAH Case No. 2023070719: ALJ determined that the district correctly exited a student with ADHD from special education, as the student’s needs were adequately supported through general education intervention.
- OAH Case No. 2023070196: ALJ found that the District’s SDC program appropriately supported the student’s social-emotional, academic, and transition needs, and any lack of progress was largely driven by the student’s volitional absences from school, which the parent facilitated.

Training & Preventative Legal Advice

We are experienced in presenting on a variety of topics in school law, to different audiences, ranging from school boards and administrators, to teachers and other services providers. From brief virtual trainings, to multi-day professional development events, our team makes sure that our presentations are current, relevant, and interactive.