Strategic, sophisticated legal services to help clients navigate the rapidly-changing and legally demanding educational environment.
Educational institutions in Arkansas face an array of federal and state laws and regulations. They also experience financial burdens in addition to the challenges of educating today’s students. At Mitchell Williams, our team of education lawyers work as advocates with educational clients to create and implement plans, policies and procedures that allow them to focus on their mission of educating students.
When a lawsuit or crisis happens, we use our depth of experience to advocate vigorously for our education clients. Our years of experience of representing some of the state’s largest schools, small rural school districts, charter schools, boards of educational non-profit organizations, local educational agencies and public and private colleges and universities along with our full-service law firm resources allows us to deliver legal services efficiently and in a cost-effective manner.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Comprehensive legal counsel with classroom experience in Arkansas
- Extensive knowledge of education laws, regulations and policies
- Deep understanding of educational operations
- Integrated team to leverage in-depth education sector knowledge and attorney experience
CAPABILITIES
- General counsel to assist with legal compliance issues
- Litigation and dispute resolution involving complex litigation, high-stakes disputes and constitutional issues
- Strategic planning, advising and compliance with the Arkansas LEARNS Act
- Employment counsel on top-level administration and faculty hiring, discipline, termination, tenure, independent contractors, wage and hour compliance and accommodation of disabilities
- Investigations into sensitive employment issues and/or student or parental concerns
- Bonds and lease financing for capital projects
- Financing issues with legal implications
- Comprehensive development and review of students, faculty, employees and boards of directors policies
- Formation, detachment and division of public school districts
- Counsel on student issues such as discipline, speech, testing, student records (FERPA), sexual misconduct and Greek life
- Crisis management for public relations issues
- Campus safety and security guidance including compliance with federal reporting requirements
- Counsel on threats of violence
- Real estate, leases, real estate transactions, construction and renovation
- Mergers and acquisitions
- Government inquiries and investigations brought by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) or Department of Justice (DOJ)
- Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, release of public records and records disclosures
- Federal financial aid maintenance under Title IV of the Higher Education Act