Attorneys

Ms. Gould’s practice includes the representation of educational institutions and governmental entities in the areas of litigation, employment and civil rights, and general school law. Prior to joining the Firm, Ms. Gould practiced general civil litigation at a firm in Houston where she gained experience in a wide variety of pretrial matters.

Ms. Demmler’s practice includes the representation of public and private sector employers in all types of litigation, including employment, civil rights, and general school law matters. She has trial experience in both state and federal courts and has successfully defended cases involving federal constitutional claims, Title IX, Title VI, Title VII, and other statutory and common law claims, including disputes involving the Texas Public Information Act, wrongful termination, personal injury, intentional infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract, various tort claims, governance disputes, and condemnation proceedings. Prior to joining the Firm in 2018, Ms. Demmler was an Assistant District Attorney for the 34th Judicial District in El Paso, Texas. As an Assistant District Attorney, she obtained substantial trial experience serving as the first chair attorney in over 50 misdemeanor and felony trials, including two 1st degree murder trials, and as second chair attorney for over 10 misdemeanor and felony trials, including an intoxication manslaughter trial.

Ms. Tucker’s practice focuses on representing public school districts in all aspects of disability rights and special education law including Section 504 and ARD meetings, mediations, administrative due process hearings, and preparing responses to Texas Education Agency and Office of Civil Rights complaints. She also has extensive experience representing school districts in federal district court related to appeals of administrative due process hearings. Prior to attending law school, Ms. Tucker taught special education for five years.

Mr. Grover worked as an associate with the litigation firm of Essmyer, Tritico & Clary, L.L.P. in Houston, Texas from 1991 until 1998 when he joined the Firm. His practice focuses on the representation of both public and private sector employers in all forms of labor, employment and civil rights matters. Mr. Grover has trial experience in both state and federal courts and has successfully defended claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act, Section 1983, Whistleblower Retaliation, Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Texas Commission on Human Rights, and other statutory and common law claims, including wrongful termination, workers compensation retaliation and various tort claims.

Ms. Esterak attended the University of Texas School of Law with the sole intent of practicing school law. While in law school, she clerked at the Texas Association of School Boards and became a staff attorney there after graduation. She joined the Firm in 1997 and practiced until 1999, at which point she was called to serve as the General Counsel for the Senate Education Committee under Senator Teel Bivins. Ms. Esterak was then hand-selected to be the Public Education Counsel for the Office of the Governor under then-Governor George W. Bush. She stepped away from her full-time practice in 2001 in order to raise a family, while continuing to focus on education legislation by working for TASB Governmental Relations for three legislative sessions. She rejoined the Firm in August 2014 as a partner in the Firm’s Austin office.

Mr. Rogers has been representing school districts since 1980 and has handled numerous special education cases for Texas school districts from “cradle to grave,” from due process hearings all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. He also has extensive experience in civil rights and employment litigation. Mr. Rogers is a frequent speaker at legal conferences and seminars regarding special education. He recently relocated to open the Firm’s Austin office and now consults with Austin area districts about IDEA compliance and dispute resolution.

Mr. Brush is Board Certified in Civil Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He has a broad litigation practice, at both the trial and appellate court levels, that includes the representation of private and public entities as plaintiffs in commercial and construction disputes, and defendants in employment, civil rights, commercial, and construction disputes. Mr. Brush has successfully handled cases involving federal constitutional claims, Title VI, Title VII, Title IX, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Rehabilitation Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Chapter 21 of the Texas Labor Code, the Texas Whistleblower Act, and other statutory and common law causes of action, including wrongful termination, personal injury, defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract, construction defect, consumer claims, insurance claims, governance disputes, and disputes involving the Texas Public Information Act.

Prior to joining the Firm, Mr. Brush worked as an associate in the litigation section of Orgain, Bell & Tucker, L.L.P. in Beaumont, Texas from 2004 to 2007. Before law school, Mr. Brush worked as a residential construction superintendent.

Mr. Stone’s practice focuses on representing school districts and governmental entities in governance and policy development matters, open government, contract review, procurement, employment and personnel investigations, student matters, and litigation. Prior to joining the Firm, Mr. Stone served as Senior Legal Counsel at Lone Star College, where he provided in-house legal services to College personnel.

Ms. Evans’ practice focuses on the representation of school districts and governmental entities in areas such as open records and open government, real estate, land development, construction, general purchasing, business transactions, governance, contracts, and procurement. She also specializes in real estate and land development, including the negotiation and drafting of real estate contracts, leases, easements and post-closing/development agreements. She routinely assists clients through due diligence, permitting, platting, infrastructure and utility development.

Ms. Morris’ practice is focused in the areas of facilities, business, maintenance and operations for educational institutions, including all aspects of public procurement and purchasing. She specializes in real estate and land development, including the negotiation and drafting of real estate contracts, leases, easements and post-closing/development agreements. She routinely assists clients through due diligence, permitting, platting, zoning, infrastructure and utility development. Ms. Morris has represented clients in eminent domain proceedings as both the condemnor and condemnee. She further specializes in all aspects of construction, including the procurement, negotiation and preparation of contracts with design professionals, contractors and other project consultants, construction and design disputes, warranty issues, surety and bonding issues, and prevailing wage issues. Ms. Morris is also experienced in negotiating and reviewing energy and technology contracts for her education clients. She routinely provides training and day-to-day consulting in all of the above areas, including bond/capital improvement program planning and execution, and is a course instructor for the Texas Association of School Business Officials. Ms. Morris has been named a Rising Star in the Texas Super Lawyers publication.

Ms. Kaminsky’s practice focuses on representing public school districts in special education and disability law matters at the administrative level, as well as student discipline. Her experience also includes representation of school districts in due process hearings, ARD meetings and mediations, and preparing responses to Office of Civil Rights and Texas Education Agency Complaints. Ms. Kaminsky frequently conducts trainings for Region 4 Education Service Center and various organizations throughout Texas. Prior to joining the Firm, Ms. Kaminsky served as in-house counsel providing legal services to the Board of Trustees, Superintendent and District personnel.

Mr. Morris represents governmental entities, including public school boards and junior and community colleges. He has considerable experience advising school boards on a wide range of issues, including governance, contracts, policy development, employment matters, board/superintendent relations, and competitive procurement. He also has extensive trial and appellate experience and has served as panel counsel for the Texas Association of School Board’s Risk Pool for more than twenty-five years. Mr. Morris has defended school districts throughout the state and has trial experience in state and federal courts (both jury and non-jury cases), before administrative agencies, and state and federal appellate experience. He has been peer reviewed by Martindale-Hubbell, receiving an AV rating, which denotes the highest rating in legal ability and ethical standards and has been selected for inclusion in Texas Super Lawyers: Rising Stars (2004) and Texas Super Lawyers (2009-2012, 2014).

Ms. Paltiyevich’s practice focuses primarily on the representation of educational institutions in the areas of facilities, business, maintenance, and operations, including all aspects of public procurement and purchasing. She further assists clients in all aspects of construction, with an emphasis on the procurement, negotiation, and preparation of contracts with design professionals and contractors. Prior to joining the Firm, Ms. Paltiyevich’s practice focused on complex commercial and civil litigation matters in numerous areas of law including: contracts, the Texas Deceptive Practices Act, commercial leases, construction, and land-use.