Education Law

Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan’s Education Law team provides a broad range of legal services to public and private K-12 districts, independent schools, colleges, and universities. Our attorneys are in tune with every aspect of the legal matters that educational institutions face and are partners in their defense when issues arise.

Our attorneys have significant experience representing educational institutions in all areas of education law, including tenure and promotion, special education, student rights, personnel and labor matters, governing board policies and procedures, campus security, general tort liability, public financing, intellectual property and technology licensing, and high-profile investigations and claims. We have handled terminations, employment grievances and litigation by faculty and staff, disputes between students and institutions, between institutions and the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”), and student claims for breach of contract, discrimination claims, negligence claims, immigration matters, construction issues, and virtually any other issues faced by educational institutions. Firm attorneys have provided advice and counsel regarding first amendment issues, open meetings and public records issues, licensing terms, contract disputes, and premises liability personal injury litigation.

Scope of Representation of Educational Institutions

Employment: We counsel and represent educational institutions in complying with the law and managing their employees in staffing decisions and personnel matters. Our experience encompasses the entire gamut of employee relations; from hiring and firing issues to matters involving unprofessional conduct and inadequate class room performance. We regularly represent educational institutions in the gamut of employment and labor issues, whether they arise in litigation, administration proceedings, regulatory and compliance proceedings, and grievances and arbitrations.

Collective Bargaining & Labor Relations: We have served as lead negotiator in labor negotiations. We work with clients in traditional, interest based, and collaborative bargaining to efficiently reach an agreement without giving up the right to manage the workforce and without losing control over the institution’s fiscal responsibilities. We also represent institutions in public and private sector labor relations and grievances.

Defending and Avoiding Claims: We work with clients to avoid and defend claims by the state civil rights agencies and the EEOC on charges of discrimination, involving sex, race, age, and national origin, and all other legally protected characteristics, classes and traits under federal and state laws, and defend claims by faculty, staff, students (and parents) and others. We represent educational institutions in investigating and defending against allegations of sexual abuse, sexual harassment, race and other proscribed bases of discrimination in internal proceedings, before state and federal administrative agencies, in litigation before federal and state courts, before the EEOC, state and local anti-discrimination agencies, and before OCR and state education departments.

Special Education and Disabled Students: Our attorneys work with educational institutions to provide training and assistance with policies and procedures relating to special education matters under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. We provide specific structuring to avoid claims, position clients to defend claims, assist clients in mediation and Individual Education Plan (”IEP) development, and represent clients in due process hearings, special education mediations, and attend IEP meetings.

Student Rights: Our attorneys provide counsel to educational clients on student issues, such as Title IX, civil rights, public accommodations, gender equity funding, freedom of speech, student discipline, and bullying/harassment. In addition, our attorneys draft and review student handbooks, student codes of conduct, and district policies and procedures relative to these issues. We also have particular expertise in working to update higher education institutions gender discrimination and anti-sexual violence policies and procedures in compliance with OCR’s recent “Dear Colleague” letter under Title IX.

Liability Claims: We are well-versed in general tort liability and represent school districts and higher education institutions directly and through their insurance liability carriers relating to claims of assault and other violent torts, alcohol and substance abuse claims, and other negligence, and personal injury suits.

Real Estate and Construction: Our attorneys provide a broad range of legal proficiency, experience and practical knowledge to its clients across a broad range of issues relating to real property, with experience in all facets of real estate law and commercial real estate transactions, with further experience in environmental law. We handle complex matters including reviewing and drafting construction contracts and documents and resolving business disputes relating to construction projects, such as breach of contract for delay in work and/or inadequate quality of work. We have also successfully resolved coverage issues regarding work exclusions and handled general insurance and coverage litigation matters with contractors and owners.

Vendor Contracts: We handle the management of contract disputes and provide contract negotiation, drafting, and review for a variety of educational vendors.

Governance: GSH Education law attorneys provide advice and counsel in such areas involving development and review of bylaws, board member liabilities, and risk management counseling.

Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer: We handle intellectual property matters, including advice on creation, protection and licensing of new works, use of the Internet, cybersquatting and online infringement issues, as well as offering or using open source software and “open courseware” materials, licensing issues under the Federal Technology Transfer Act and licensing agreements regarding databases, technology and software.

Bond Issues: GSH attorneys represent educational institutions in every aspect of bond financing in educational facilities by acting as underwriters, placement agent, and issuer’s counsel. Over the past three years, we have provided bond counsel services to private and public colleges and universities, boards of education, public school districts with more than a billion dollars in transactions, as referenced in The Red Book.

Immigration: Educational institutions can face unique challenges in recruiting and employing foreign citizen faculty and staff. We provide assistance with U.S. immigration matters, including solutions such as Employment Visas, H-1B Visas, EB-1 Visas, and EB-2 Visas.

Representative Experience

• Represent the second largest school district in the country in tort litigation, involving injuries ranging from soft tissue to wrongful death, with demands for settlement ranging from $10,000 to $25,000,000. The cases involve shootings, rape, negligent supervision of employees, school accidents involving students and nonstudents, as well as negligent conduct of all types.
• Represent both a large metropolitan area school district and county community college in matters involving dangerous condition of public property, negligent supervision, assault and battery, and intentional torts.
• Avoided New York State Human Rights Commission and state court review of a high profile sexual harassment claim; resolved matter through negotiation and mediation.
• GSH attorneys won summary judgment in federal court for a college in an employment lawsuit. The district court summary judgment was sustained on appeal by the U.S. Court of Appeals. The college had summarily terminated the employment of plaintiff, its Director of Graduate Programs, who also held faculty rank. The plaintiff had lied on her employment application about her indictment on felony embezzlement charges, and, when the institution found out about the conviction two years later, it fired the plaintiff. Plaintiff’s claims that she was denied “contractual” due process in violation of the college’s by-laws and faculty handbook were resolved in the college’s favor by the district court judge, and affirmed on appeal.
• GSH attorneys successfully represented a university before the EEOC in a charge involving an alleged hangman’s noose in the workplace. The charging party’s charge was withdrawn based on an economic settlement favorable to the university.
• GSH attorneys represented an educational institution in a suit filed by a former employee alleging sex, age, disability, and FMLA discrimination. We obtained a dismissal of the disability claim and assisted the client in settling for nuisance value.
• Conducted numerous internal investigations for higher education law clients in matters involving alleged academic dishonesty, breach of fiduciary duty of loyalty, allegations of self-dealing, and in discrimination claims.
• GSH serves as outside counsel to a multi-campus, at-a-distance university, where we advise on a wide variety of legal matters pertaining to higher education, including board and policy issues general litigation, employment matters, vendor contracts, regulatory matters before the U.S. Department of Education and various State agencies, real estate matters, vendor contract issues, advice on administering University programs and affiliations, student complaints, faculty relations matters, and intellectual property issues.
• Firm attorney has served as the lead negotiator for Passaic County Technical Institute in its labor negotiations with three units of the New Jersey Education Association (teachers, support staff and clerical, and custodial).
• Negotiated and drafted Intranet license agreement and related user terms whereby universities in a regional research library consortium received access and use rights for students, faculty, affiliated researchers and independent contractors to a proprietary database and related software through work stations on campus as well as remove access through member university Intranets.
• GSH attorneys represented a public university in multi-plaintiff race and national origin claims brought by former employees. Three and a half week trial resulted in defense verdict on all claims.
• Represented university in a federal court lawsuit by a former staff employee who alleged that the institution violated provisions of ERISA when it terminated her health and disability insurance benefits. We were able to successfully negotiate a settlement in favor of the university, under the terms of which neither the university nor its employment practices liability insurance carrier was required to make any payment to the former employee whatsoever.
• Represented an institution in an ethnic/national origin discrimination lawsuit filed by a former staff employee. Won a pretrial summary motion and plaintiff’s motion for reconsideration of the Court’s granting of summary judgment was denied.
• Represented an education institution in an employee theft of the institutions confidential documents matter. The matter was resolved by a confidential settlement with the return of the stolen documents.
• GSH attorneys represented a university in a federal court lawsuit brought by a male coach alleging gender disparities towards female Division I program athletes in athletic opportunities and funding in violation of, among other statutes, Title IX. The U.S. Department of Education (“DoE”) charges and the resulting lawsuit were ultimately resolved by way of a Settlement Agreement this firm negotiated, wherein the university agreed to take certain minor corrective actions (which were in any event required by DoE regulations) and the plaintiff agreed to definitively retire at a date certain.
• Presently representing one of the nation’s largest school district in a multimillion-dollar litigation involving performance by an environmental consultant on a new schools construction program. Issues include contract interpretation, Inspector General Audits, and consideration of fraud and False Claims Act causes of action.
• Experience in construction inspections in schools when an inspector’s denial of permit was successfully overturned when our attorney led an effort in litigation assistance to dispute denial of a certificate of occupancy by the local building inspector to keep a charter school from opening its doors.
• Over the past three years, we have provided bond counsel services to private and public colleges and universities, boards of education, public school districts in more than a billion dollars in transactions involving funding, refunding, general obligations, construction, and tax anticipation warrants.
• We routinely represent school districts on due process hearings under the IDEA, and have been successful on both pre-hearing motions to dismiss and on hearings on the merits of the claim. We also effectively utilize federal court proceedings to defend or reverse hearing decisions.
• $80M - Developer’s Counsel in the construction and development of a major arts, residential and educational facility in a downtown redevelopment district. Issues and documents include right to enter permit, real estate options, disposition and development agreement, long-term ground lease, amendment to existing reciprocal easement agreement, street vacation and public access for project.
• $13M - Developer’s Counsel to an Educational Development Company in connection with the acquisition of real property and the redevelopment and construction of such real property into 250 units of student housing to be located at Southern Baton Rouge, Louisiana University. Transaction involves advising client on issues related to acquisition of real property, construction, and financing.
• Sub-landlord’s Counsel to an Educational System in connection with the subleasing of approximately 10,000 sq. feet in downtown Chicago.
• $23M - Purchaser’s Counsel to an Educational & Economic Development Corp. in the acquisition, leasing, construction and development of a LEED certified office complex located in Chicago, Illinois. The client is seeking LEED Silver Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. Our LEED AP designation and experience have been instrumental in the Project.