Education Funding Litigation: Stinson LLP Law Firm

Overview

We have successfully represented states, counties, cities, school districts and other public bodies in the areas of education funding, school desegregation and constitutional and statutory law claims, including matters before the U.S. Supreme Court and Missouri Supreme Court. We offer deep industry knowledge in school budgeting, administration, assessment and delivery of educational resources—topics that are frequently at issue in these disputes. Most importantly, our first-chair experience in a number of complex education trials and appeals means we have examined and cross-examined many of the nation's leading experts.

Experience

Our attorneys have advised education clients on constitutional and statutory issues, including the setting of school district attendance boundaries so as to minimize the chances of a successful challenge to that process. We have advised state legislative and executive officials on school funding issues outside the context of litigation, and have also provided assistance to states following adverse rulings in funding cases on issues relating to appeal, remedy and funding formula amendments.

We craft a well-conceived plan at the outset of each matter to gather necessary facts, identify appropriate witnesses and data, and be thoroughly prepared to dissect the opponents' expert and non-expert evidence. When a claim moves to litigation, our attorneys are prepared to move forward and don't need to "reinvent the wheel" to determine what evidence will be most helpful and where that evidence may be found. Additionally, our attorneys know how to manage litigation costs without compromising the outcome. We work effectively with in-house counsel, tailoring the range of their services to complement the resources the client applies to the case. Finally, our attorneys can identify and retain the most appropriate expert witnesses and put themselves in the best position to counter the opponents' lay and expert testimony.

Clients

School district clients have included the City of St. Louis School District and the Transitional School Board for the City of St. Louis. We have litigated education disputes in the following states: