Since 1981, the firm has represented school districts, BOCES, colleges, private schools and other education service providers throughout New York State as general, labor, special and special education counsel.
We routinely provide counsel and litigation services in such diverse areas as:
• APPR
• Affordable Care Act
• Bonding and financing
• Board governance and protocol
• Budget and finance issues
• Civil Service Law
• Collective bargaining
• Common Core
• Consolidation
• Constitutional issues (e.g., free speech)
• Construction and renovation
• Contracts
• Defamation, libel and slander
• Dignity for All Students Act
• Disability, pregnancy and religious accommodations
• Discrimination and harassment based upon sex, race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, creed, marital status, domestic violence victim status, disability, age or any other protected characteristic
• Education Law
• Elections
• Employee disciplinary proceedings pursuant to Education Law § 3020-a, Civil Service Law § 75 and contractual alternative disciplinary procedures
• Environmental
• Fact finding
• Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
• Freedom of Information requests
• Grievance proceedings and arbitrations
• Improper practice charges
• Labor relations
• Layoff, tenure and recall rights
• Mediation
• Occupational safety and health
• Open Meetings Law
• PILOTs
• Policy preparation and revision
• Purchasing and bidding
• Real property transactions
• Retaliation
• Review of Board agendas and minutes
• SAVE legislation
• School finances
• Special education
• Student and personnel policies
• Student disciplinary matters
• Student privacy rights and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
• Superconciliation
• Tax certiorari
• Tax levy cap
• Tenure
• Testing opt outs
• Transgender issues
• Wage and hour compliance
• Workplace violence anticipation and avoidance
We regularly litigate before federal, State and local courts, arbitrators, the Public Employment Relations Board, the Commissioner of Education, Impartial Hearing and State Review Officers, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the State Division of Human Rights, Workers’ Compensation, Unemployment Insurance and the Office of Civil Rights.