Special Education Attorney

Profile

CSE - Special Education Attorney
The candidate under the supervision of the Director of the Special Education Unit of the Office of Legal Services, with wide latitude for independent judgment and decision-making, the Special Education Unit (SEU) Attorney engages in difficult and complex legal work having significant financial, procedural or policy consequences. Performs related work. Reports to: Deputy Director of the Special Education Unit and the Special Education Unit Managing Attorney. Direct Reports: SEU Attorneys, Special Education Community Associates and Community Coordinators. Works closely with the Special Education staff, including the Special Education Office, Committees on Special Education, the Office of School Support and the staff in the Office of Legal Services. Prepares for and/or tries complex cases involving significant precedents, novel and complicated determinations of law and fact, or having significant legal, policy or financial implications for the Department of Education. Determines the advisability of presenting witnesses as well as the admissibility of types of evidence and matters of legal strategy. Provides training for the field staff and the Committee on Special Education (CSE) clinical staff on compliance with federal and state education laws and regulations. Confers with special education specialists, technical experts, and other attorneys, including counsel for litigants. Negotiates and implements the settlement of special education claims. Conducts legal investigations; administers meetings to confer with CSE impartial hearings teams and clinical staff to discuss pending special education claims and CSE special education-related matters. Prepares and argues difficult cases and appeals in administrative tribunals and in the courts. Reviews, revises and approves agreements prepared by other attorneys. Analyzes studies and reports on the effects of city, state and federal legislation. Trains and supervises SEU Legal Associates to review, gather documentation, investigate and prepare reports and settlement recommendations regarding the propriety of parents’ due process claims. Oversees the SEU Legal Associates to maintain appropriate records on cases filed for impartial hearings, responds to due process complaints, and determines the Department’s obligations to parents and students pursuant to impartial hearing orders. Analyzes the relative strength of impartial hearing cases and evaluates the appropriateness of plaintiffs’ demands. Instruct appropriate offices in the DOE as to their obligations to parents and students pursuant to impartial hearing orders. Reviews internal settlement recommendations. Gathers evidence and assists in researching issues for the Special Education Unit. Appears at pre-hearing conferences and responsible for reviewing administrative decisions. Researches state and federal case law and implications for settlement negotiations. Works with public advocacy groups, parents and private attorneys to arrive at mutually beneficial settlements. Reviews, revises and approves stipulations of settlements. Provides training for the field staff and attorneys on settlements and agreements. Reviews and negotiates claims for attorney’s fees. Prepares preliminary reports, statistical data and recommendations pertaining to cases. Reviews administrative decisions. Serves as Team Leader for multiple staff attorneys in trial preparation and presentation and settlement of cases in the Special Education Unit. Assists the Managing Attorney with the training and supervision of agency attorneys from the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) who are assigned to the Committees on Special Education. Serves as supervisor for SEU community associates and administrative staff in the pre-hearing and settlement of cases. Assists the Managing Attorney for Litigation with the training and supervision of agency attorneys from the Office of the General Counsel who are assigned to the Committees on Special Education.

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