Author: Pamela

School is just around the corner, and its time to prepare to advocate for your special needs child. Two primary laws protect students in school who have a disability – IDEA, the special education law, and section 504, which is part of the larger federal civil rights law.  Both require, among other things, that all public schools and many private schools provide reasonable accomodations to a student with a disability if that accommodation is needed for the student  to “access” the academic program.

A student who gets all or mostly “A” grades is sometimes considered to be ineligible for accomodations because they are doing fine, or so the thinking goes.

Not true.

High grades may be an indicator that the student does not need any accomodations, but it is not the end of the inquiry.  For example, a student in a wheelchair who gets all “A’s” but can’t take some the classes she wants to take because they are on a second floor of a building with no elevator would clearly be intitled to some sort of accomodation so that she can take the classes she wants to take.  That example is pretty easy to see.

But the same logic applies to other, less immediately obvious, situations.  For example, a student who gets all “A’s” but is unable to participate in school clubs and activities because of a diagnosed disorder that impairs her ability to engage in social interactions may be entitled to reasonable accomodations such as an assigned “mentor” or specialized assistance that enables him to engage with the group.   Another student with a chronic health condition may need a reduced workload or a shortened school day to attend medical treatments or accommodate limited stamina. And yet another student with a mental disorder may need assignments given to her in advance to accomodate periods of time when she is unable to concentrate sufficiently to complete her work.

Student grades are only one of many factors that should be looked at when assessing whether a student needs a reasonable accomodation at school.  So if you have an A student with a disability who is struggling for one reason or another, do not hesitate to go to the school and ask for an evaluation and assessment.

An odd thing happens in my practice sometimes.  People pay me money and then disappear without getting what they came for.   Here’s how it happens:

A couple comes in to talk about doing their estate plan.  They tell me, sheepishly, that they have been meaning to do this for a long time but are only now getting around to it.  I assure them that is more common than they think, and tell them that the only thing that matters is that they are getting it done now.

We talk about what they want, they write me a check for half the fee, and a week or so later I send them rough drafts of all their documents.

Then I wait.  And send them weekly emails asking if they have questions.

Sometimes, I wait for a few months.  Sometimes I wait longer.  Sometimes I get a response when I say “Please let me know if you intend to complete this plan so that I can keep your file open.”

And then there are a few clients who I never hear from again, despite the fact that they have already made a financial comittment to the project.

These experiences make it clear that it is really hard for a lot of people to write their will.

I offer these tips to help you get to completion on this project:

1. Remember that perfect is not the goal.  The goal is to make things easier on those you leave behind, and almost any plan is easier for your loved ones than having no plan.

2. Also remember that you can always make changes in the years to come.

3. Set a time to sign the documents.  When you first meet with your attorney, make a committment to a specific date for the final signing – then it’s like homework and even if you wind you up pulling an all nighter to get your part of the assignment done, at least it will be done. A sense of urgency can be your friend.

4. Make appointments with yourself – put a time on your calendar to research and choose an attorney, put a time on your calendar to go through the paperwork, put a time on your calendar to review the drafts your attorney will give you, etc.  Treat this with as much seriousness as you would treat a work project.

If you’re ready to get started, give me a call.