05-05-2006, 04:40 PM
Patrick O'Donnell
Plain Dealer Reporter
The Cleveland Bar Association says it will no longer seek fines from an Akron couple for going to court without a lawyer to help their autistic son.
Bar Association President B. Kelly Tompkins said the bar had sound legal grounds for filing charges of unauthorized practice of law against Brian and Susan Woods. But Tompkins apologized to the Woodses in announcing the withdrawal of charges, which drew harsh criticism when they were made public late last month.
"Filing this complaint was a mistake," Tompkins wrote. "The U.S. Supreme Court should first resolve the unsettled state of the law in this important area of federal law. Until then, we intend to invest our efforts toward addressing the broader and very real needs of parents with special needs children."
The Supreme Court is expected to decide in the next few weeks whether to hear an appeal by another local family of an autistic child, Jeff and Sandee Winkelman of Parma, on whether parents can act as their child's attorney in federal court.
Advocates of parents and handicapped children say lawyers with expertise on such issues are hard to find or are too expensive. Some federal courts around the county agree, and allow parents to represent their children in such cases.
But some federal courts, including the 6th Circuit Court covering Ohio, say legal tradition allows non-lawyers to represent themselves but not anyone else. The bar followed the lead of the court in arguing that children would be hurt by poor representation of their cases in court.
Though parents have often seen their self-filed cases thrown out by the courts, the $10,000 fine sought by the Cleveland Bar raised the stakes.
Representatives of the National School Boards Association, the American Bar Association and the Ohio bar's Committee on the Unauthorized Practice of Law could not recall another case of parents being charged.
Brian Woods said he was grateful that the bar dropped the charge. But he said he doubts the bar was really acting in the interests of children, given that he had won a favorable settlement of his son's case against the Akron schools four years earlier.
Allan Michelson, the lawyer defending Susan Woods against the bar's charges, said he was pleased the case was dropped because his client was only trying to help her son. "Shame on those responsible for even bringing the charges in the first place," Michelson said.
In making the announcement, the bar highlighted the hours its lawyers donate to help the poor with their cases and said it would "continue to advocate for the rights of children and to protect the public's interest in competent legal representation."
Tompkins could not say what help is offered to special-education students and their families, but did say that lawyers from the Cleveland Bar donate 4,000 to 5,000 hours a year to child and juvenile issues.
Brian Woods said if the bar really cares about helping families with disabled children, it should make public a list of lawyers specializing in special education cases who are willing to volunteer.
Plain Dealer Reporter
The Cleveland Bar Association says it will no longer seek fines from an Akron couple for going to court without a lawyer to help their autistic son.
Bar Association President B. Kelly Tompkins said the bar had sound legal grounds for filing charges of unauthorized practice of law against Brian and Susan Woods. But Tompkins apologized to the Woodses in announcing the withdrawal of charges, which drew harsh criticism when they were made public late last month.
"Filing this complaint was a mistake," Tompkins wrote. "The U.S. Supreme Court should first resolve the unsettled state of the law in this important area of federal law. Until then, we intend to invest our efforts toward addressing the broader and very real needs of parents with special needs children."
The Supreme Court is expected to decide in the next few weeks whether to hear an appeal by another local family of an autistic child, Jeff and Sandee Winkelman of Parma, on whether parents can act as their child's attorney in federal court.
Advocates of parents and handicapped children say lawyers with expertise on such issues are hard to find or are too expensive. Some federal courts around the county agree, and allow parents to represent their children in such cases.
But some federal courts, including the 6th Circuit Court covering Ohio, say legal tradition allows non-lawyers to represent themselves but not anyone else. The bar followed the lead of the court in arguing that children would be hurt by poor representation of their cases in court.
Though parents have often seen their self-filed cases thrown out by the courts, the $10,000 fine sought by the Cleveland Bar raised the stakes.
Representatives of the National School Boards Association, the American Bar Association and the Ohio bar's Committee on the Unauthorized Practice of Law could not recall another case of parents being charged.
Brian Woods said he was grateful that the bar dropped the charge. But he said he doubts the bar was really acting in the interests of children, given that he had won a favorable settlement of his son's case against the Akron schools four years earlier.
Allan Michelson, the lawyer defending Susan Woods against the bar's charges, said he was pleased the case was dropped because his client was only trying to help her son. "Shame on those responsible for even bringing the charges in the first place," Michelson said.
In making the announcement, the bar highlighted the hours its lawyers donate to help the poor with their cases and said it would "continue to advocate for the rights of children and to protect the public's interest in competent legal representation."
Tompkins could not say what help is offered to special-education students and their families, but did say that lawyers from the Cleveland Bar donate 4,000 to 5,000 hours a year to child and juvenile issues.
Brian Woods said if the bar really cares about helping families with disabled children, it should make public a list of lawyers specializing in special education cases who are willing to volunteer.