EDUCATION LAW AND PUBLIC SECTOR REPRESENTATION

            The Cuddy & McCarthy Firm is recognized both in New Mexico and nationally as a leading firm in the practice of education law and the representation of public-sector clients.  We have made an extensive commitment to this specialized area in order to serve the growing needs of our clients in those areas.  We currently represent the New Mexico School Boards Association (NMSBA), more than four-fifths of the state’s 89 school districts, and such diverse educational institutions as the Santa Fe Indian School, Institute of American Indian Arts, New Mexico School for the Deaf, the New Mexico Military Institute, and, on a contract basis, the University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, and Western New Mexico University.

            In addition, we carry a substantial caseload of litigation on behalf of New Mexico’s school districts through the New Mexico Public School Insurance Authority (NMPSIA).  Our litigation through NMPSIA and on behalf of individual districts is focused primarily on school personnel and civil rights actions, but also includes the defense of schools in student rights suits, procurement and contractor disputes, board-member recall proceedings, and other school-related matters.  Through our work for NMPSIA, we have represented many public-education entities for which the Cuddy & McCarthy Firm is not their only or regular counsel.

            Most attorneys in the firm have many years experience in advising and representing state and local public bodies in all state and federal courts, and in administrative proceedings.  The breadth and depth of our experience in education and public-sector representation enables us to anticipate the problems and issues a school board and administration will face.

            In our representation of schools, we emphasize prevention.  The education, personnel, and civil-rights litigation experience noted above reflects an outstanding record of successful litigation.  Litigation, however, whether judicial or administrative, is expensive and disruptive.  Consequently, we work closely with our clients to identify and anticipate potential legal problems in order to avoid litigation.

            Our long experience in presenting seminars and conferences for school boards and administrators on school law issues – particularly through the New Mexico School Boards Association – has demonstrated the importance of that close working partnership with our clients. 

            We continuously assess the quality of the services we provide to our school clients; we listen to our clients.  In addition to informal exchanges, we conduct regular written surveys of our school clients, in which they are asked to rate all aspects of our services to them.  Those responses are compiled, analyzed, and responded to by our School Law Practice Group.  In this way, we seek to ensure that we are meeting our clients’ expectations in every respect possible.

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