Senior Education Law Associate

Fagen Friedman & Fulfrost LLP (F3 Law); St. Louis (MO); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) with profit-sharing

Hybrid work schedule

Job summary

F3 Law seeks a Senior Education Law Associate to deliver sophisticated counsel and representation for education clients. The attorney will handle litigation, administrative matters, special education issues, student discipline, and general school law tasks.

This hybrid role involves in-office collaboration roughly two to three days weekly and may offer reduced-hour or part-time schedules for qualified candidates.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school.
• Active license and good standing with the Missouri Bar required.
• Illinois Bar admission is strongly preferred.
• Approximately 6+ years of relevant legal experience, with substantial experience in education law strongly preferred.
• Experience representing school districts, educational institutions, or other education sector clients preferred.

Responsibilities

• Independently manage a sophisticated caseload involving education law matters from initial assessment through resolution.
• Advise school districts, educational institutions, administrators, and other education clients on a wide range of legal, regulatory, and compliance matters.
• Represent clients in litigation, administrative hearings, due process proceedings, mediations, negotiations, and other dispute resolution forums.
• Draft and review pleadings, motions, briefs, legal memoranda, contracts, policies, correspondence, and other legal documents.
• Conduct legal research and provide practical, business-minded legal advice.
• Develop case strategy and work directly with clients to identify risks and achieve favorable outcomes.
• Take and defend depositions, prepare witnesses, and participate in hearings and trials as appropriate.
• Maintain strong client relationships and provide responsive, high-quality client service.
• Collaborate with partners, associates, paralegals, and legal support professionals across the Firm.
• Assist with mentoring and developing junior attorneys and contributing to the growth of the education law practice.
• Participate in client development, networking, presentations, and other business development activities, as appropriate.

Education

Juris Doctor (JD)

Active license and good standing with the Missouri Bar

Illinois Bar admission is strongly preferred

Approximately 6+ years of relevant legal experience

Experience representing school districts, educational institutions, or education sector clients

Job description

About F3 Law

At F3 Law, we believe that a culture of inclusion and belonging, one of embracing and respecting each other's differences, strengthens our ability to serve our clients and communities. We are committed to fostering a workplace where individuals of all backgrounds feel valued and appreciated. By bringing together different perspectives and lived experiences, we create better solutions and a more dynamic, thoughtful, and effective team.

About F3 Law

At F3 Law, we believe that a culture of inclusion and belonging, one of embracing and respecting each other's differences, strengthens our ability to serve our clients and communities. We are committed to fostering a workplace where individuals of all backgrounds feel valued and appreciated. By bringing together different perspectives and lived experiences, we create better solutions and a more dynamic, thoughtful, and effective team. F3 Law provides essential legal support to schools, colleges and other public entities, helping them navigate complex legal issues to fulfill their mission of serving students and communities.

Summary

The Senior Education Law Associate is an experienced attorney responsible for providing sophisticated legal counsel and representation to F3's education clients. This role will manage a broad range of education law matters, including litigation, administrative proceedings, regulatory and compliance issues, special education matters, student discipline, employment issues, and general school law matters. The successful candidate will possess strong legal judgment, excellent written and oral advocacy skills, and the ability to independently manage matters while collaborating closely with clients, attorneys, and legal support teams. This is a hybrid position, generally requiring regular in-office collaboration approximately two to three days per week. The Firm is open to discussing reduced-hour and part-time schedules with qualified candidates.

Responsibilities

• Independently manage a sophisticated caseload involving education law matters from initial assessment through resolution.
• Advise school districts, educational institutions, administrators, and other education clients on a wide range of legal, regulatory, and compliance matters.
• Represent clients in litigation, administrative hearings, due process proceedings, mediations, negotiations, and other dispute resolution forums.
• Draft and review pleadings, motions, briefs, legal memoranda, contracts, policies, correspondence, and other legal documents.
• Conduct legal research and provide practical, business-minded legal advice.
• Develop case strategy and work directly with clients to identify risks and achieve favorable outcomes.
• Take and defend depositions, prepare witnesses, and participate in hearings and trials as appropriate.
• Maintain strong client relationships and provide responsive, high-quality client service.
• Collaborate with partners, associates, paralegals, and legal support professionals across the Firm.
• Assist with mentoring and developing junior attorneys and contributing to the growth of the education law practice.
• Participate in client development, networking, presentations, and other business development activities, as appropriate.
• Other duties, responsibilities and activities may change or be assigned at any time with or without notice.

Requirements

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school.
• Active license and good standing with the Missouri Bar required.
• Illinois Bar admission is strongly preferred.
• Approximately 6+ years of relevant legal experience, with substantial experience in education law strongly preferred.
• Experience representing school districts, educational institutions, or other education sector clients preferred.
• Demonstrated experience managing matters independently.
• Strong litigation, legal research, writing, negotiation, and advocacy skills.
• Excellent judgment, communication, organization, and client service skills.
• Ability to work effectively in a collaborative, hybrid environment.

Benefits & Perks

• Benefits: F3 Law offers a supportive and intellectually engaging work environment, reasonable billable hours, annual billable hour bonuses, comprehensive health insurance benefits, and a 401(k) plan with profit-sharing contributions.
• Hybrid position with an expectation of working in the office approximately two to three days per week.
• Part-time and reduced schedules will be considered for qualified candidates.

F3 Law is an equal employment opportunity employer and does not discriminate against applicants or employees because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, citizenship status, various ability status, genetic information, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression of an otherwise qualified individual, or membership in any other class protected by applicable law. F3 Law hires and promotes individuals based on their qualifications for the job to be filled.

F3 Law seeks to build a culturally diverse staff where differences are valued and respected. Women, minorities, individuals with various abilities, veterans, LGBTQ+ and intersectional individuals are encouraged to apply.