New Jersey School & Education Law Attorneys
Partnering with Former Principal Jennifer Levy, Esq. to protect your child’s educational rights, optimize IEPs, enforce HIB safety, and secure out-of-district placements across Northern New Jersey.
When your child is struggling in school—whether due to an unaddressed learning disability, an inadequately implemented Individualized Education Program (IEP), severe Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying (HIB), or an improper residency disenrollment threat—navigating the public school district’s administrative machinery can feel like an overwhelming battle. Parents are frequently met with bureaucratic red tape, delayed Child Study Team (CST) evaluations, or defensive administrators attempting to protect district budgets at the expense of a student’s legal rights.
At Raff & Raff, LLP, our School & Education Law practice is spearheaded by Jennifer Levy, Esq. As a former principal, school administrator, and experienced educator, Jenni brings a level of peer-to-peer administrative credibility that traditional litigation attorneys simply cannot offer.
Our practice operates under a clear, proven philosophy: Partnership First, Legal Protection Always. We know that children thrive when parents and school districts maintain a productive working relationship. Because case managers, superintendents, and school board attorneys recognize Jenni as a fellow administrator who understands school operations and district budgeting, she bypasses the defensiveness that traditional lawsuits trigger. We work alongside Child Study Teams to optimize IEPs, add measurable goals, and secure Out-of-District (OOD) private school placements directly through the collaborative IEP process without burning bridges.
However, when a school district stubbornly refuses to fulfill its statutory duties under federal and state law (IDEA, Section 504, N.J.A.C. 6A:14, and N.J.S.A. 18A), our firm stands fully prepared to go to war. Supported by our firm’s century-long trial lineage (1922–Present), we litigate aggressively before Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) in the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) to enforce your child’s constitutional right to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).
“When a traditional trial lawyer walks into an IEP meeting, school case managers and psychologists often close ranks and prepare for a fight. As a former principal, my approach is fundamentally different. School administrators treat me as a peer educator. I can sit down with the Child Study Team, look objectively at the child’s data, and help the team build the internal justification they need to approve testing, services, or out-of-district placements. We fix the program collaboratively—and if the district refuses, we take them to court.“
— Jennifer E. Levy, Esq. (Former Principal)
Our Specialized School & Education Law Practice Focus Areas
Select a category below to explore your statutory rights under New Jersey education codes and discover our strategic services:
Special Education IEP Eligibility & Child Find
If your child is struggling with dyslexia, ADHD, autism, or school-refusal anxiety, districts cannot legally gatekeep evaluations behind Response to Intervention (RTI) delays. We enforce the strict 20-day and 90-day evaluation timelines under N.J.A.C. 6A:14-3.3 and force independent evaluations at public expense.
IEP Optimization, Compliance & Due Process
Is your child’s IEP failing to deliver measurable progress? We audit existing IEP goals, enforce accommodations, and trigger Stay-Put protections under N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.7 when districts unilaterally cut services. We guide families through 15-day resolution sessions, OSE mediation, and Office of Administrative Law (OAL) trials.
Out-of-District Placements & The Naples Act
When a public school environment is fundamentally inadequate or toxic, New Jersey law requires the district to fund specialized private school tuition. We guide parents through mandatory 10-business-day unilateral placement notices and utilize The Naples Act (N.J.S.A. 18A:46-14) to secure public funding for private placements.
HIB Anti-Bullying Advocacy & Student Defense
New Jersey’s Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Act (N.J.S.A. 18A:37-13 et seq.) moves at lightning speed. We enforce mandatory interim safety plans for victims of peer bullying and aggressively defend students falsely accused of HIB infractions to protect their permanent disciplinary records.
Student Discipline, Suspensions & MDR Reviews
Facing long-term suspension or Board of Education expulsion proceedings? We enforce due process hearing rights under N.J.A.C. 6A:16-7.3, challenge coercive student statements, and demand mandatory Manifestation Determination Reviews (MDRs) for students with IEPs or 504 plans.
School Residency Battles & Disenrollment Claims
Has your school board issued a disenrollment notice claiming non-residency or demanding tens of thousands of dollars in retroactive tuition? We enforce the 21-day Commissioner appeal window to trigger automatic Stay-Put protections and establish domicile or McKinney-Vento hardship exceptions.
Featured Service: Private Case Management & In-District Advocacy
Collaborative Advocacy for Your Child’s Entire Educational Journey
Litigation should be the last resort, not the first step. Most families simply want their child to receive appropriate services while remaining in their home district alongside their peers.
Because Jennifer Levy, Esq. is a former principal, case managers and child study teams respect her as a peer educator. She leverages this unique credibility through her Private Case Management service, acting as your family’s dedicated, ongoing advocate throughout the school year:
- Educator-to-Educator IEP Optimization: Reviewing draft IEPs, attending Child Study Team meetings, and working directly with case managers to correct vague goals and add vital accommodations without creating administrative hostility.
- Consensus-Building for Private Placements: Presenting outside expert medical and psychological data to the district in a format that helps administrators justify funding Out-of-District placements directly through the IEP process, completely bypassing expensive litigation.
- Direct Meeting Representation: Attending annual IEP reviews, 504 plan meetings, Manifestation Determination Reviews (MDRs), and eligibility sessions to guide the discussion constructively.
- Ongoing Implementation Audits: Conducting routine progress-report checks throughout the school year to ensure teachers and service providers are actually delivering the accommodations promised on paper.
By bringing an insider’s perspective to the negotiation table, we build a constructive bridge between your family and the school district, securing the services your child needs while preserving the relationships they rely on every day.
Meet Us Safely and Conveniently via Zoom
We understand that taking time off work to sit in traffic on Route 3, Route 80, or Route 17 to travel to an attorney’s office can be difficult—especially when managing a child’s academic crisis or behavioral needs.
To make your legal representation as frictionless as possible, Raff & Raff, LLP offers secure, face-to-face Zoom consultations.
- Real-Time Screen Share Document Review: We share screens to review your child’s IEP drafts, 504 plans, Child Study Team evaluation reports, HIB investigation logs, or disenrollment notices together in real-time.
- Immediate Strategy Action Plan: Bypassing the commute allows us to analyze statutory deadlines (such as 10-day unilateral notices or 21-day residency appeal windows) within hours of your call.
- Zero Commute Friction: Speak directly with an experienced school attorney and former principal from the complete comfort and privacy of your home or office.
Centrally Located in Paterson to Serve Northern New Jersey Families
Because school law disputes frequently involve concurrent family court proceedings (such as custody or non-dissolution FD matters) or administrative trials before state judges, our central office on Church Street in Paterson is ideally positioned:
- Office of Administrative Law (OAL): Handling administrative trials before Administrative Law Judges for special education due process complaints, Naples Act tuition claims, and residency appeals.
- Passaic County Superior Court & Chancery Division: Less than a 5-minute walk from our office for concurrent Family Part matters, emergency guardianship filings, and civil protective dockets.
- Bergen & Surrounding County School Boards: Supported seamlessly by our second fully staffed office in Ridgewood, representing parents across Passaic, Bergen, Essex, Morris, and Hudson counties.
Frequently Asked Questions About NJ School & Education Law
No. Under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the New Jersey Child Find mandate (N.J.A.C. 6A:14-3.3), school districts have an absolute, proactive legal duty to locate, identify, and evaluate all children suspected of having a disability, regardless of whether the child is advancing from grade to grade or earning passing marks. High-functioning children with autism, severe ADHD, dyslexia, or school-refusal anxiety frequently pass classes while suffering severe educational and emotional deficits.
“Stay-Put” is a powerful statutory mechanism under N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.7. If a school district attempts to unilaterally alter your child’s placement, cut speech or occupational therapy, or remove a 1-on-1 paraprofessional, filing a formal Due Process petition immediately triggers Stay-Put. This legally freezes your child’s current IEP program and placement in place, forcing the district to continue providing all existing services until the dispute is fully resolved by agreement or an Administrative Law Judge.
Under federal law and N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.10, if parents decide to unilaterally remove their child from a public school and place them in a specialized private school, they must provide written notice to the school board at least 10 business days prior to enrolling the child. The notice must state why the proposed public IEP is inadequate and declare the parents’ intent to seek public tuition reimbursement. Failing to serve this 10-day notice can legally bar you from recovering tuition costs.
In New Jersey, school principals are under intense administrative pressure regarding state-audited HIB statistics. Some administrators attempt to classify obvious bullying as “normal peer conflict” to keep HIB numbers low, while others over-prosecute minor arguments out of fear of state audits. Because Jenni presided over countless HIB investigations as a principal, she knows how school teams construct these dossiers. She cuts through the panic, forces immediate physical safety plans for victims, and dismantles false HIB accusations by demonstrating a lack of statutory “distinguishing characteristic” motivation.
Protect Your Child’s Future. Schedule Your Free Consultation Today.
Do not allow a school district’s administrative red tape, budget constraints, or procedural delays to compromise your child’s education, safety, and emotional well-being. Speak face-to-face with an experienced education attorney and former K-12 principal via a secure Zoom meeting. We will analyze your child’s IEP, evaluation reports, or HIB notices and outline a clear, collaborative, or aggressive strategy.
Schedule Your Complimentary Strategy Session Today!
Fill out this form or call us directly at 973-742-1917 to schedule a complimentary strategy session!