Growing number of public school systems around Atlanta hire in-house counsel
As their legal matters increase in frequency and complexity, a growing number of public school systems around Atlanta have hired in-house counsel. "I think more should," says Dorsey E. Hopson II, newly named general counsel for Clayton County Public Schools. "The Clayton County school system has a half billion dollar budget. It's almost scary when you think about any entity with that type of budget not having in-house counsel." In announcing the decision to create the new position, the Clayton school board cited growth, complexity of legal issues, and the growing cost for outside counsel—$552,000 in legal bills last year alone. Atlanta Public Schools was the first district in Georgia to hire in-house counsel. The next two, Rockdale County and Burke County, brought in their former outside counsel. "Nationally, there's more of a trend in that direction," says Phillip L. Hartley, one of the two founding partners of Gainesville, Georgia-based Harben & Hartley, which specializes in representing public school systems. Many large urban school systems around the country have in-house GCs, he says. "As legal issues facing schools become more complex and more pervasive, there is more work to be done. Some superintendents are looking to add central office help."
The fastest growing workload for school lawyers is in the area of special education, school lawyers say. Parents have filed suits against schools seeking more services, more accommodations, and even sometimes private school tuition when they don't feel the public schools meet their needs. Another big issue for school lawyers is campus security and safety, says Rockdale County school system general counsel Jack Lance. Rockdale had a shooting in 1999 where six students were injured. The shooter is now in prison. "It can happen anywhere." School GCs also have heavy responsibilities in labor and employment law, as well as civil rights, contracts, discipline, and other areas. Mr. Lance says he frequently gets calls about students transferring into the system who have been in trouble in other jurisdictions to determine whether or not they have to be accepted. Recently, issues have come up regarding accommodations for different religions, such as prayer time for Muslims. Mr. Lance also believes he is able to save his school system money by writing fairer contracts. "Vendor contacts are all one-sided, because they're written by the vendors … ," he says. "We insist on basic terms that are fair to both sides: warranties, limitations, damages, mediation first before lawsuits." It's hard to prove, but Mr. Lance says he believes he is able to avoid potential litigation troubles by good communication. School GCs still use outside counsel, but they say they are better able to manage the work than a non-lawyer would be. Those systems that have hired in-house counsel have a variety of opportunities to save on billable hours, notably board meetings, which have a tendency to run long. As outside counsel, Mr. Hartley says, he and his associates rarely attend a full-length school board meeting. Rather, they look closely at agendas to see when their issues will be brought up so that they can come in for a few minutes rather than having to bill for an entire meeting. Sam S. Harben Jr. and Mr. Hartley formed their firm in 1980, representing three local boards of education. As the school practice grew, they began limiting their work to education. Now, they represent more than 100 public school districts across the state, Mr. Hartley says. They also represent the Georgia School Boards Association. One steady trend in their practice has been increasing work, says Mr. Hartley. And there is still plenty to be done, even with systems that have a GC.
Law.com By Katheryn Hayes Tucker (Fulton County Daily Report)
[Editor’s Note: Below are links to (1) excerpts from NSBA’s Selecting and Working with a School Attorney: A Guide for School Boards, including a section on "In-house or Outside Counsel"; (2) NSBA’s "Find a School Attorney," a searchable database of members of the Council of School Attorneys (COSA); and (3) NSBA’s online school law job listings, which can be posted for free by COSA members and NSBA National Affiliate school districts.]
NSBA on selecting and working with a school attorney
NSBA "Find a School Attorney" database
NSBA School Law Positions listings