Law Firm Overview

Mr. Ferleger has more than thirty years experience in resolving disputes for the benefit of thousands of individuals, as well as numerous organizations and government agencies. He believes in zealous representation and also is keenly aware of how important your case is to you.

He has argued five times before the Supreme Court of the United States, represented individuals and government agencies, taught law school, and has written, lectured and consulted nationally.

Mr. Ferleger has served federal courts, presiding over hearings and assisting courts as special master for nearly nine years in one recent case, and as court-appointed monitor in a large class action in another case. In that judicial capacity, he has brought parties to agreement on dozens of matters. In a written decision, a federal judge characterized his service this way: “The Special Master [David Ferleger] is a skilled judicial adjunct who has served the Court with balance and with fairness to the parties.” Mr. Ferleger is a founding member of the Academy of Court Appointed Masters (ACAM), and on the publications committee for its Bench Book for judges.

Mr. Ferleger’s experience also includes representing the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, including its Governor, in settling amicably five complex federal class action lawsuits, as well as representing individual and class plaintiffs in many other disputes, often reaching major structural change through discussion and negotiation, as well as judicial decisions.

Additional public service work has included inspection of facilities for the West Virginia Supreme Court's Juvenile Justice Committee, and assisting the National Institute of Mental Health, the State of Wyoming, the State of New Jersey, the National Disabilities Rights Network, and other bodies as well.

Mr. Ferleger has taught at the New York University Law School and the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Writing has included book chapters, books of legal materials, law review articles, and popular magazine and newspaper articles.

He has visited programs in about 30 states and internationally. Mr. Ferleger has broad experience including, for example, areas such as civil rights, employment, academic and university disputes, disabilities, ADA, real estate, housing and investments.

His public speaking has ranged from an invited presentation for the United Nations Conference in Iceland, to testimony before the United States Senate, to plenary addresses, speeches and workshops at professional and consumer conferences coast to coast.

With caring, and with the benefit of skills accrued during decades of national experience, Mr. Ferleger brings the parties in your dispute to the courtroom or to the table with a plan designed to maximize the likelihood of success.

Education: University of Pennsylvania, BA 1969; University of Pennsylvania Law School, JD 1972.

Born in Philadelphia to Albert (Avram) and Miriam Ferleger, I grew up as a child of Holocaust survivors. My mother was one of last to leave the Warsaw Ghetto and was in Maidanek, Auschwitz and other concentration camps, and my father was from Chmielnick, a small town, which was destroyed; he spent the balance of the war living and hiding in a small hole dug under a stable. That background has both instilled in me a sense of justice, inspired my work for those treated as less than first class people, and has granted the blessing of my Jewish religion and heritage.

My family and friends are most important, beginning with my beloved wife and our children. Our children are a blessing and inspiration.

I've had the good fortune to travel to internationally to study disability and public health issues, including visits to Cuba, China and Iceland. In Iceland, I gave an invited presentation to a United Nations Conference. I have testified before the United States Senate. Some of my work has been featured in both newspapers and television news programs such as Prime Time Live, Good Morning America, and CBS Eye to Eye with Connie Chung.

The honor of arguing five times before the Supreme Court of the United States, along with the deep pleasure I have had obtaining desired results for many clients over thirty plus years, including major changes through landmark class actions, have all been deeply sustaining to me.

Areas of Practice

• Administrative Law
• Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Banking & Finance Law
• Business & Commercial Law
• Consumer Protection
• Contracts
• Civil Rights
• Sexual Harassment
• Communications & Media Law
• Constitutional Law
• Discrimination
• Construction Law
• Education Law
• Employment Law -- Employer
• Elder Law
• Ethics & Professional Responsibility
• Government Agencies & Programs
• Health & Health Care Law
• Nursing Home
• Insurance Law
• Internet - Cyberspace
• Labor Law
• Litigation & Appeals
• Personal Injury -- Plaintiff
• Products Liability Law
• Professional Malpractice Law
• Legal Malpractice
• Medical Malpractice
• Real Estate Law
• Landlord/Tenant
• Science & Technology Law
• State, Local & Municipal Law
• Toxic Torts

Honors and Awards

• Research Fellow, Legal Services Corporation, Washington, District of Columbia, 1979
• David J. Vail National Advocacy Award, for Distinguished Service in Protecting the Rights and Dignity of Mental Disabled Americans, Presented by Mental Health Association of Minnesota, 1983
• Allen S. Olmsted Award for Distinguished Service in the Cause of Civil Liberties, Presented by Delaware County Chapter, American Civil Liberties Union, 1985

Published Works

• Ferleger, Special Master Rules: Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 53, The Role of Special Masters in the Judicial System, 31 William Mitchell L. Rev. 1193, 2004
• Ferleger, Special Master Rules: Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 53, The Role of Special Masters in the Judicial System, 31 William Mitchell L. Rev. 1193, 2005
• Ferleger, Masters in Disability Litigation & Amended Rule 53, Ferleger, Masters in Disability Litigation & Amended Rule 53, March/April, 2005
• Monitoring Costs: Systemic Litigation Regarding Institutions and Community Services, 12 Mental and Physical Disability Law Reporter 492, November-December, 1988
• The Place of “Choice,” in Choice and Responsibility: Legal and Ethical Dilemmas in Services for People With Mental Disabilities, New York (Book Chapter), 1994
• Community and Institutional Litigation: Filing, Settlement & Implementation, Philadelphia (Book Chapter), 1994
• Larum Ekki Ad Fara Yfir Gotu Ef Engin Er, Journal of the Iceland Association for People with Retardation, August, 1988
• Advocate for the Disabled Wins One, The American Lawyer ((Interview/Profile), January/February, 1989
• A Report on the Wyoming State Training School, Lander, Wyoming, 1989
• Disability Law Litigation Manual, National Institute of Mental Health, Washington, D.C., 1989
• Civil Rights Disability Practice: Expediting Institutional Mistreatment Litigation, 12 Mental & Physical Disability Law Reporter 309, 1988
• Children, the Constitution and the Law, The Media and Children's Issues (Children’s Express Symposium II), 1987
• Protection and Advocacy For People Who Are Labeled Mentally Ill (Co-Author), National Association of Protection & Advocacy Systems, Volume I, 1987
• Protection and Advocacy For People Who Are Labeled Mentally Ill, National Association of Protection & Advocacy Systems, Volume I, 1987
• Protection and Advocacy Systems For the Mentally Ill: Summary of Issues in Mental Law With Bibliography, National Institute of Mental Health, Washington, D.C., (Contract 86MO175153OD ADAMHA/NIMH), March, 1987
• Protection and Advocacy Systems For the Mentally Ill: National Consultant Directory, National Institute of Mental Health, Washington, D.C., (Contract 86MO175153OD ADAMHA/NIMH), March, 1987
• Rights and Dignity: The Supreme Court, Congress and People With Disabilities After Pennhurst (Co-Author), 5 W.New Eng.L.Rev. 327, 1983
• Anti-Institutionalization and the Supreme Court, 14 Rutgers L.Rev. 595, 1983
• The Promise of Lelsz v. Kavanagh, Texas Legal Services Center Alert, August, 1983
• Establishing and Maintaining an Institutional Advocacy Program: Representing People With Handicaps (Co-Editor), Legal Services Corporation, 1981
• Levine, et al., Guardianship and Conservatorship in Massachusetts: An Attorney's Reference Manual (Chapter on Interviewing the Client with Mental Disabilities), 1981
• The Ethical and Practical Problems of Protective Services and Guardianship (Chapter on Interviewing), Nebraska Commission on Aging and Bi-Regional Older Americans Advocacy Center, 1981
• Interview, Community Care For the Retarded, Sunday Detroit Free Press, Page 1, December 14, 1980
• "The Right to Community Care for the Retarded", Flynn & Nitsch, eds., Normalization, Social Integration and Community Services, 1980
• Anti-Institutionalization: The Promise of the Pennhurst Case (Co-Author), 31 Stan.L.Rev. 717, 1979
• Commitment of Minors, in Conference Report, The 2nd National Conference on The Legal Rights of the Mentally Disabled, Kansas Bar Association, Menninger Foundation, 1979
• The Pennhurst Case: Equal Rights for the Retarded, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Review and Opinion Section, Page 1, January 1, 1978
• The Failure of Institutions for the Retarded: Pennhurst, A "Monumental Example of Unconstitutionality", Health Law Project Bulletin, March, 1978
• The Rights of Mental Patients, Norback, Ed., The Health Almanac (Van Nostrand Rheinhold)
• The Future of Institutions for Retarded Citizens: The Promise of the Pennhurst Case, in Mental Retardation and the Law, Mental Retardation, President's Committee (Dept. of Health, Education and Welfare), July, 1978
• Alternative Practice in Public Interest Litigation, in Course Materials, Seminar on Public Interest Litigation: Expanded Private Practice and Attorney's Fees, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 1977
• Commitment Rights of the Mentally Disabled, in Course Materials, Asserting the Rights of the Mentally and Physically Disabled, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, 1970
• Asylums, Parents & Kids: Commitment and the Constitution, in Mental Disability Law (Practicing Law Institute and Mental Health Law Project), 1979
• The Battle Over Children's Rights, Psychology Today, July, 1977
• Children in Trouble Part II: The Case of Bartley v. Kremens, (Interview), Children's Express, May, 1977
• Parental Love and Care: The "Due Process" To Which Children Are Entitled, 28 Hospital and Community Psychiatry 221, 1977
• Kremens v. Bartley: The Right To Be Free, 27 Hospital and Community Psychiatry 708, 1976
• They Cry Out For Help: Few Will Listen to the Mental Patient, Op-Ed Page, Philadelphia Inquirer 7A, July 2, 1976
• Testimony, in The Abuse and Misuse of Controlled Drugs in Institutions, Hearings Before the Subcommittee to Investigate Juvenile Delinquency, Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, July 31, Volume II, Pages 163-273, 1975
• Testimony, in The Abuse and Misuse of Controlled Drugs in Institutions, Hearings Before the Subcommittee to Investigate Juvenile Delinquency, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1977
• In-Hospital Rights of Mental Patients, in Bavaria, ed., Legal Aspects of Mental Health Workshop (Staff Development Program), Allentown State Hospital, NIMH Grant No. 03-T-000, 907-09, 1976
• A Patients' Rights Organization: Advocacy and Collective Action By and For Inmates of Mental Institutions, 8 Clearinghouse Review 597, 1975
• Legal Challenges to the "Voluntary" Admission of Children to Mental Institutions, Preparing and Trying the Lawsuit: Anatomy of the Bartley Case, (Co-Author), Legal Services Corporation, Volume II, 1976
• Mental Patient Civil Liberties Project, in Borman, ed., Explorations in Self-help and Mutual Aid, Center for Urban Affairs, Northwestern University, 1975
• Introductory Note, The Fairview Papers, Alliance for the Liberation of Mental Patients, 1977
• The Mental Patient Civil Liberties Project in Glenn, ed., Voices from the Asylum, Harper, 1974
• The Vanishing Welcome Mat: Legal Services and Organization in a Mental Hospital, Uncommon Law, 1974
• Patients' Rights Manual, in Glenn, ed., Voices from the Asylum, Harper, 1974
• Loosing the Chains: In-Hospital Civil Liberties of Mental Patients, 13 Santa Clara Lawyer 447, 1973
• Delusion and Revolution, Common Sense, 1973
• The Mental Patient Civil Liberties Project: A Model for Consumer Accountability in the Mental Hospital, Rough Times, November, 1972
• Christian, Normalization as a Goal: The Americans with Disabilities Act and Individuals with Mental Retardation, 73 Tex. L. Rev. 409, 1994
• Eastman, Speaking Truth to Power: The Language of Civil Rights Litigators, 104 Yale L.J. 763, 1995
• Halpern, Introduction: Symposium Mentally Retarded People and the Law, 31 Stan. L. Rev. 545, 1979
• Herr, Special Education Law and Children with Reading and Other Disabilities, 28 J.L. & Educ. 337, 1999
• Koocher, Different Lenses: Psycho-Legal Perspectives on Children’s Rights, 16 Nova L. Rev. 711, 1992
• Minow, When Difference has its Home: Group Homes for the Mentally Retarded, Equal Protection and Legal Treatment of Difference, 22 Harv. C.R.-C.L. L. Rev. 111, 1987
• Perlin, "For the Misdemeanor Outlaw:” The Impact of the ADA on the Institutionalization of Criminal Defendants with Mental Disabilities, 52 Ala. L. Rev. 193, 2000
• Perlin, "I Ain’t Gonna Work on Magie’s Farm No More:" Institutional Seggregation, Community Treatment, the ADA, and the Promise of Olmstead, 17 T.M. Cooley L. Rev. 53, 2000
• Perlin, "Make Promises by the Hour:" Sex, Drugs, the ADA, and Psychiatric Hospitalization, 46 DePaul L. Rev. 947, 1997
• Perlin, "Their Promises of Paradise:" Will Olmstead V. L.C. Resuscitate the Constitutional "Least Restrictive Alternative" Principle I in Mental Disablity Law?, 37 Hous. L. Rev. 999, 2000
• Perlin, "There’s no Success Like Failure / and Failure’s no Success at all:” Exposing the Pretextuality of Kansas v. Hendricks, 92 NW. U. L. Rev. 1247, 1998
• Perlin, Gould & Dorfman, Therapeutic Jurisprudence and the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Mentally Disabled Persons: Hopeless Oxymoron or Path to Redemption?, 1 Psychol. Pub. Pol'y & L. 80, 1995
• Perlin, The ADA and Persons with Mental Disabilities: Can Sanist Attitudes be Undone?, 8 J.L. & Health 15, 1994
• Poston, Developments in Federal Disability Discrimination Law: An Emerging Resolution to the Section 504 Damages Issue, 1992/1993 Ann. Surv. Am. L. 419, 1994
• Rosenberg, Developmental Disability Law: A Look Into the Future, 31 Stan. L. Rev. 817, 1979
• Sangree, Control of Childbearing by HIV-Positive Women: Some Responses to Emerging Legal Policies, 1 Buff. L. Rev. 309, 1993

Classes and Seminars

• Adjunct Assistant Professor of Law, New York University Law School, 1982 - 1990
• Lecturer, University of Pennsylvania Law School
• Faculty, Student Development Program, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA., 1974
• Teaching, Temple University Student Development Program, 1974
• Supervisor, Agency for Clinical Program, University of Pennsylvania Law School, 1972 - 1973
• Supervisor, Temple University School of Social Administration, 1972 - 1973
• Supervisor, Agency for Clinical Program, Rutgers University School of Law, Camden, New Jersey, 1973 - 1974
• Supervisor, Agency for Clinical Program, Rutgers University School of Law, Camden, New Jersey, 1976 - 1977
• Supervisor, Agency for Field Work, Bryn Mawr School of Social Work, 1974
• Address, "Special Masters in Complex Litigation: Amended Rule 53", National Association of Special Masters St. Paul, MN, 2004
• "Evolutions in Advocacy 1960-1994", United Nations Presentation
• "Beyond Normalization Toward One Society For All", United Nations Conference, Reykjavik, Iceland, 1994
• Address, "Community Services Litigation: Filing, Settlement & Implementation", Real Rights, Real Reform -- 13th Annual Conference, National Association for Rights Protection and Advocacy, San Diego, CA, 1994
• Plenary Address, "The Place of 'Choice,' ” Conference: Choice and Responsibility: Legal and Ethical Dilemmas in Services for Persons With Mental Disabilities, New York Commission on Quality of Care for the Mentally Disabled, Albany, NY, 1994
• Address, "The Place of ‘Choice' ", Association of Special Masters and Court Monitors Atlanta, GA, 1994
• Seminar Lecturer, “The Americans With Disabilities Act and Medical Treatment", Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Residency Training Program
• Lecturer, The Graduate Hospital & University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, 1994
• Address, "Reflections from Court Masters,", The ARC (Formerly Association for Retarded Citizens of the United States) National Convention, Providence, RI, 1993
• Seminar Lecturer, "Mental Health and the Law: Treatment Rights", Medical Educational Services, Inc., King of Prussia, PA, 1993
• Plenary Address, "The State of the Law: Rights of People With Disabilities", 10th Annual Conference, National Public Welfare Association, San Antonio, TX, 1993
• Address, "The Texas Case: Lelsz v. Kavanagh", 10th Annual Conference, National Public Welfare Association, San Antonio, TX, 1993
• Address, "Evaluating and Proving Damages in Litigation Challenging the Quality of Care of Persons with Disabilities", Sixteenth Annual Conference, The National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems (NAPAS), Washington, D,C., 1993
• Address, "Community Services in the Courtroom", American Association on Mental Retardation (AAMR), 117th Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C., 1993
• Address, “People Living in the Community: What Rights do They Have and How Can They be Enforced?”, National Association for Rights Protection and Advocacy 11th Annual Conference, Kansas City, MO, 1992
• Address, “The Right to Treatment ,The Right to Refuse Treatment, and The Right To Choose”, A Conference on the Clinical and Legal Issues Relating to Psychotropic Medication & Alternative Treatments, University of AL, School of Law, 1990
• Address, "Creating Community Alternatives Through Litigation, Advocacy Challenges in the 90’s", 13th Annual Conference of the National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems (NAPAS), Beheads, MD, 1990
• Address, "Challenging Established Doctrines: The Impact of Cultural and Societal Forces on Mental Health", The American Orthopsychiatric Association, Inc., 67th Annual Meeting, Miami Beach, FL, 1990
• Address, "Damage Actions on Behalf of People With Disabilities: A Morning With David Ferleger", Maryland Trial Lawyers Association, and Maryland Disability Law Center, Baltimore, 1991
• Address, "Damage Actions: A Controversial Newcomer in the Abuse and Neglect Prevention Arsenal", National Symposium on Abuse/Neglect Prevention and Intervention, New York, 1991
• Address, "Litigating Difference", Law and the Community, Association for American Law Schools (AALS), Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C., 1991
• Address, "The Right to Community Placement and Services, Advocacy Challenges in the 90’s", 12th Annual Conference of the National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems, 1989
• Address, "Access Issues", PAMI Coordinators Meeting, National Institute of Mental Health and National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems, 1990
• Welcoming Address, Damages Litigation, Rights of People With Disabilities Dismantling Barriers to Justice, New York University School of Law, 1989
• Address, "Role of Litigation as a Quality Assurance Mechanism", American Association on Mental Retardation, 1989 Annual Meeting, Chicago, 1989
• Address, "Back to Court in Pennhurst: Enforcement of Court Decrees in the Community", American Association on Mental Retardation, 1989 Annual Meeting, Chicago, 1989
• Address, "Enforceable Rights in Community Services: New Thought and Theories", National Association for Rights Protection & Advocacy (NARPA), 1988 Rights Conference, Portland, OR, 1988
• Address, "Lawsuits for Damages: Strategies for Victory", National Association for Rights Protection & Advocacy (NARPA), 1988 Rights Conference, Portland, OR, 1988
• Address, "Personal Injury and Damage Actions", National Association of Protection & Advocacy Systems (NAPAS), 1988 Annual Conference, Bethesda, MD, 1988
• Address, "The Philadelphia Police and Fire Association for Handicapped Children v. City of Philadelphia", Board of Directors, Charles R. Drew Community Mental Health/Mental Retardation Center, Philadelphia, PA, 1988
• Keynote Speech, Mississippi Protection & Advocacy System, Inc. Annual Conference, Jackson, MI, 1988
• Keynote Speech, Advocacy Resource Conference, West Virginia Department of Health and Mental Health Association in West Virginia, Morgantown, WV, 1988
• Keynote Speech, "Civil Rights Seminar in Mental Health and Disability Law", Wyoming State Bar and Protection & Advocacy System, Inc., Laramie, WY, 1988
• Address, "Rights in Treatment Competency: Client Choice v. Substituted Judgment -- Who Knows Best, Considerations in Legal Restraints & Guardianship Proceedings", Civil Rights Seminar in Mental Health and Disability Law, Wyoming State Bar and Protection & Advocacy System, Inc., Laramie, WY, 1988
• Negotiation Workshop, Advocacy Resource Conference, West Virginia Department of Health and Mental Health Association in West Virginia, Morgantown, WV, 1988
• Address, "Rights of People With Disabilities", Wyoming Law School, Laramie, WY, 1988
• Conference Organizer, Co-Sponsor and Presenter, Damages Action Conference, Washington, D.C., 1988
• Address, "Litigation Practice Book -- Report on Technical Assistance Project", National Association of Protection & Advocacy Systems, Inc. and NIMH PAMI Coordinators Meeting, Orlando, FL, 1987
• Address, "Children, the Constitution and the Law", Children’s Express, A Symposium on the Media and Children’s Issues, New York, NY, 1987
• Luncheon Speaker, State Convention, Association for Retarded Citizens, Maryland, Baltimore, MD, 1987
• Keynote Speech, Virginia Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation Seventh Annual Human Rights Seminar, Charlottesville, VA, 1986
• Address, Families Unite for Mental Health, 1986
• Address, Great Lakes Regional NRA Conference, Rehabilitation Values . . . Tradition, Vision, Commitment, 1985
• Address, Mental Health Consumer Rights Advocacy Conference, 1985
• Address, Families Unite for Mental Health, 1985
• Address, "Informed Consent to Treatment: Juveniles and the Mentally Disabled" Conference on Current Issues in Law and Psychiatry, N.Y. Supreme Court Appellate Division, First Dept., and Committees of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, 1983
• Address, "Legal Issues and the Disturbed Adolescent", Eastern State School and Hospital Conference on Building a Total Treatment Framework for the Disturbed Adolescent, Trevose, PA, 1983
• Panel, “Solo and Small Firm Practice”, Second Annual Public Interest Law Conference, New Approaches to Law in the Public Interest, University of Pennsylvania (Panel Discussion), 1983
• Address, "Recent Litigation and Expanding Community Services", 1982 Mental Health Rights Conference, National Association for Rights Protection and Advocacy, Detroit, MI, 1982
• Address, "Alternative Approaches to Public Interest Law Practice and Funding", Conference on the Future of Public Interest Law and Practice, University of Pennsylvania (Panel Discussion), Philadelphia, PA, 1982
• Address, "The History and Present Reality of Institutions and Implementation Strategies for Institutional Problems", National Conferences on Establishing and Maintaining An Institutional Advocacy Program: Representing People With Handicaps, San Francisco, CA, 1981
• Address, "The History and Present Reality of Institutions and Implementation Strategies for Institutional Problems", National Conferences on Establishing and Maintaining An Institutional Advocacy Program: Representing People With Handicaps, Washington, D.C., 1981
• Address, Public Interest Law Conference, University of Pennsylvania Law School, Philadelphia, PA, 1981
• Address, "Post-Partum Pennhurst: Rights to Treatment and Habilitation in Least Restrictive Settings", Institutional Law Training, Pennsylvania and Legal Services Center, Harrisburg, PA, 1981
• Address, "Rights, Wrongs, and the Cost of Freedom: A New Ideology for Advocacy?", Conference on Legal Rights of the Disabled Citizen, Louisville, KY, 1981
• Address, Third Annual Symposium on Mental Health and the Law, University of Richmond, T.C. Williams School of Law, 1980
• Address, Governor’s Advocacy Council for Persons With Disabilities, Public Interest Conference: Focus on Community Alternatives, 1980
• Address, "Advocacy for the Legal Interests of Children", National Association of Counsel for Children, Colorado Springs, CO, 1980
• Dinner Speaker, Annual Dinner, Mental Health Association of Lackawanna County, Scranton, PA, 1980
• Address, American Association on Mental Deficiency, Mississippi, Annual Meeting, Jackson, MI, 1980
• Convenor, Organizer and Lecturer, Rural Lawyer Training, Developmental Disabilities Advocacy Network, Conference of the Rural Lawyer Training Project, 1980
• Address, "Advocacy: Asserting the Rights of the Mentally Disabled", Allied Service for the Handicapped, Lackawanna Association for Retarded Citizens and Mental Health Association of Lackawanna County, Dunmore, 1980
• Address, "Whose Hands Are Tied? Physical Restraints, Minors and the Law", American Academy of Child Psychiatry, Annual Convention, Atlanta, GA, 1979
• Course Planner and Seminar Lecturer, Seminar on Asserting the Rights of the Mentally Disabled, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 1979
• Address, Practicing Law Institute, Legal Rights of the Mentally Handicapped, 1979 - 1980
• Keynote Speaker, Current Concerns in Public Sector Law, National Public Law Training Center, Washington, D.C., 1979
• Address, Ohio Association for Retarded Citizens, Annual Convention, 1979
• Address, "Asylums, Parents and Kids The Right to Be Free", Kings College, Wilkes-Barre, PA, 1978
• Address, American Association of Law Liberties, Annual Convention, 1981
• Address, "Children’s Rights: Past and Present", University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 1978
• Address, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, Pittsburgh, PA, 1978
• Plenary Speaker, Massachusetts Association for Retarded Citizens, 23d Annual Convention, Eastham, MA, 1978
• Address, Washington State Association for Retarded Citizens, Annual Convention, Ocean Shores, WA, 1978
• Address, 2d National Conference on the Legal Rights of the Mentally Disabled, The Kansas Bar Association, The Menninger Foundation, Topeka, KS, 1978
• Address, American Association on Mental Deficiency, Annual Convention, New Orleans, LA, 1977
• Seminar Lecturer, Seminar on Public Interest Litigation: Expanded Private Practice and Attorney’s Fees, Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Philadelphia, PA, 1977
• Address, Annual Devereux Foundation Institute on Therapeutic Education, West Chester, PA, 1977
• Address, Children’s Rights, Columbia University Teacher’s College National Conference, New York, NY, 1976
• Address, Pennsylvania Rehabilitation Association Annual Meeting, 1975
• Address, Self-Help Exploratory Workshop, 1974
• Address, National Legal Aid and Defender Association Annual Meeting, 1974
• Address, American Psychological Association Annual Conference, 1974
• Address, National Association of Social Workers Southern Regional Conference, 1974
• Address, Conference on Mental Health Law, State of Maine, Department of Mental Health and Corrections and Bowdoin College, 1974
• Address, National Association of Social Workers Annual Conference, 1972
• “Legal Issues and the Disturbed Adolescent", The Social Service Department of Eastern State School and Hospital, Trevose, PA, 1983

Pro Bono Activities

• Mental Patient Civil Liberties Project, 1972 - 1976
• Foundation for Dignity, 1985 - 1989

Representative Cases

• Artway v. Pallone, 672 F.2d 1168 93d Cir. (U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit 1982)
• Baccus v. Parrish, 45 F.3d 958 (5th Cir. 1995)
• Baldridge v. Clinton, 139 F.R.D. 119 (E.D. Ark. 1991)
• Barbiero v. Supreme Court of Pennsylvania , (E.D. PA.)
• Behavior Research Institute v. Leonard , (Bristol County Mass)
• Buress v. Beal , (M.D. PA.)
• Carr v. School District of Philadelphia , (E.D. PA.)
• Caruso v. Clark , (E.D. PA.)
• City of Philadelphia v. Commonwealth Department of Public Welfare, 564 A.2d 271, 128 Pa.Cmwlth 565 (PA.Cmwlth. 1989)
• Cockerham v. Hughes , (N.D. TX. 1987)
• Commonwealth Department of Public Welfare v. Kallinger, 580 A.2d 887, 134 (PaCmwlth.415, 59 U.S.L.W. 2193) (PA. Cmwlth. 1990)
• Commonwealth Department of Public Welfare v. Kallinger, 532 Pa. 292, 615 A.2d 730 (PA. Cmwlth. 1992)
• Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Dept. of Corrections v. Kallinger, 530 Pa. 269, 608 A.2d 494 (1992)
• Commonwealth v. Sematis, 555 A.2d 1347, 382 Pa.Super. 569 (1989)
• Cospito v. California , (D.N.J. 1982)
• Davenport v. St. Mary Hospital, 1988 WL 15199 (E.D. PA. 1988)
• Davenport v. St. Mary Hospital, U.S. Dist. Lexis 1332 (U.S. Dist. 1988)
• Downs v. Department of Public Welfare, 368 F.Supp. 454 (E.D. PA. 1975)
• Falter v. Veteran Administration , (D.N.J.)
• Feagley v. Waddill, 868 F.2d 1437 (5th Cir. 1989)
• Fontroy v. Owens, 23 F.3d 63 (3rd Cir. 1994)
• Fontroy v. Owens, 989 F.2d 486 (3rd Cir. 1993)
• Fontroy v. Owens, 114 S.Ct. 671, 510 U.S. 1033 (1994)
• Garwood v. Maguire , (E.D. PA.)
• Garwood v. Maguire, II , (E.D. PA.)
• Goldy v. Beal, 429 F.Supp. 640 (M.D. PA. 1976)
• Goldy v. Beal, 91 F.R.D. 451 (E.D. PA. 1981)
• Griffith v. Ledbetter, 711 F.Supp. 1108 (N.D. GA. 1989)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 465 U.S. 89 (1984)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 451 U.S. 1 (1981)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 673 F.2d 645 (3rd Cir. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 612 F.2d 84 (3rd Cir. 1979)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 446 F.Supp. 1295 (E.D. PA. 1977)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 451 F.Supp. 233 (E.D. PA. 1978)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 855 F.Supp. 747 (E.D. PA. 1994)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 855 F.Supp. 733 (E.D. PA. 1994)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 154 F.R.D. 594 (E.D. PA. 1994)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 834 F.Supp. 757 (E.D. PA. 1993)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 784 F. Supp. (E.D. PA. 1992)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, U.S. Dist. Lexis 11020 (1987)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 610 F. Supp. 1221 (D.C. PA. 1985)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 97 F.R.D. 522 (D.C. PA. 1983)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 673 F.2d 645 (3d Cir. 1983)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 566 F.Supp. 185 (E.D. PA. 1983)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 707 F.2d 702 (3rd Cir. 1983)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 567 F. Supp. 1504 (D.C. PA. 1983)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 673 F.2d 647 (3d Cir. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 673 F.2d 628 (3d Cir. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 545 F.Supp. 410 (D.C. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 555 F.Supp. 1142 (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 835 F. Supp. 1138 (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 559 F. Supp. 153 (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 542 F. Supp. 619 (E. D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 536 F. Supp. 522 (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 533 F. Supp. 668 (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 533 F.Supp. 649 (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 533 F. Supp. 641 (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 533 F. Supp.661 (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 526 F. Supp. 428 (E.D. PA. 1981)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 526 F. Supp. 423 (E.D. PA. 1981)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 526 F. Supp. 414 (E.D. PA. 1981)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 526 F. Supp. 409 (E.D. PA. 1981)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 533 F. Supp. 631 (E.D. PA. 1981)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 612 F.2d 84 (3d Cir. 1979)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 612 F.2d 131 (3d Cir. 1979)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 452 F. Supp. 867 (E.D. PA. 1978)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 451 F. Supp. 233 (E.D. PA. 1978)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 446 F. Supp. 1295 (E.D. PA. 1978)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School and Hospital, 1995 WL 493277 (E.D. PA. 1995)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School and Hospital, 899 F.Supp. 209 (E.D. PA. 1995)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School and Hospital, 725 F. Supp. 861 (E.D. PA.. 1989)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School and Hospital, 49 F.3d 939 (3rd Cir. 1995)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School and Hospital, 901 F. 2d 311 (3d Cir. 1990)
• Robert Hartman Contempt Proceeding, Halderman v. Pennhurst State School and Hospital , (E.D. PA. 1987)
• Institutionalized Juveniles v. Secretary of Public Welfare, 442 U.S. 640 (1979)
• Institutionalized Juveniles v. Secretary of Public Welfare, Vacating and Remanding 459 F.Supp. 30 (E.D. PA. (Three-Judge Court) 1978)
• Institutionalized Juveniles v. Secretary of Public Welfare, 87 F.R.D. 463 (E.D. PA. 1978)
• Institutionalized Juveniles v. Secretary of Public Welfare, 568 F.Supp. 1020 (D.C. PA. 1983)
• Institutionalized Juveniles v. Secretary of Public Welfare, 758 F.2d 897 (3d Cir. 1985)
• Institutionalized Juveniles v. Secretary of Public Welfare, 78 F.R.D. 413 (E.D. PA. 1978)
• Bartley v. Kremens, 402 F.Supp. 1039 (E.D. PA. (Three-Judge Court) 1975)
• Bartley v. Kremens, 431 U.S. 119 (1977)
• Johnson v. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, 472 U.S. 353 (1985)
• Jones v. Kavanagh , (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Katkow v. Rosen , (Bucks City, PA.)
• Lang v. Delaware Valley Mental Health, 469 A.2d 302, 322 PA.Super. 600 (1983)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 903 F.Supp. 1037 (N.D.Tex. 1995)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 783 F.Supp. 286 (N.D.Tex. 1991)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 824 F.2d 372 (5th Cir. 1987)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 710 F.2d 702 (5th Cir. 1983)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 98 F.R.D. 11 (E.D. TX. 1982)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 815 F.2d 1034 (5th Cir. 1987)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 807 F.2d 1243 (5th Cir. 1987)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 710 F.2d 1040 (5th Cir. 1983)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 112 F.R.D. 367 (N.D. TX. 1986)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 629 F.Supp. 1487 (N.D. TX. 1986)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 673 F.Supp. 828 (N.D. TX. 1987)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 1987 U.S. Dist. Lexis 11055 (U.S. Dist. 1987)
• Lelsz v. Kavanagh, 137 F.R.D. 646 (N.D. TX. 1991)
• Lefkowitz v. Bucks County Mental Health/Mental Retardation Administrator, 1985 WL 4105 (E.D. PA. 1985)
• Lewis v. White, 1989 WL 54025 (E.D. PA. 1989)
• Lewis v. White, 1990 WL 106591 (E.D. PA. 1990)
• Lombard v. Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center for Mental Retardation, Inc., 556 F. Supp. 677 (D. MA. 1993)
• Lynch v. Sessions, 942 F.Supp. 1419 (M.D.Ala. 1996)
• McDonald v. Eilers, 1988 WL 102649 (E.D. PA. 1988)
• McDonald v. Eilers, 1988 WL 131360 (E.D. PA. 1988)
• McDonald v. Eilers, 1988 U.S. Dist. Lexis 13800 (E.D. PA. 1988)
• McDonald v. Eilers, 1988 U.S. Dist. Lexis 12942 (E.D. PA. 1988)
• McDonald v. Eilers, 1988 U.S. Dist. Lexis 11125 (1988)
• Meisel v. Kremens, 405 F. Supp. 1253 (E.D. PA. 1975)
• Meisel v. Kremens, 80 F.R.D. 419 (E.D. PA. 1978)
• Mental Patient Civil Liberties Project v. Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, Hospital Staff Civil Rights Committee, 444 F.Supp. 981 (E.D.PA. 1977)
• Mental Patient Civil Liberties Project v. Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, Hospital Staff Civil Rights Committee, 541 F.2d 275 (Affirmed) (3d Cir. 1976)
• Mental Patient Civil Liberties Project v. Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, Hospital Staff Civil Rights Committee, 430 U.S. 925, 97 S.Ct. 1542 (S.Ct. 1977)
• Musko v. McCandless, 1995 WL 580275 (E.D. PA. 1995)
• Musko v. McCandless, 1995 WL 262520 (E.D. PA. 1995)
• Northern California Psychiatric Soc. v. City of Berkeley, 178 Cal.App.3d 90, 223 Cal.Rptr. 609 (Cal.App. 1 Dist. 1986)
• Pfeffer v. Com. Unemployment Compensation Bd. of Review, 382 A.2d 511, 33 Pa.Cmwlth. 601 (PA.Cmwlth. 1978)
• Philadelphia Police and Fire Association for Handicapped Children, Inc. v. City of Philadelphia, 699 F.Supp. 1106 (E.D. PA. 1988)
• Philadelphia Police and Fire Association for Handicapped Children, Inc. v. City of Philadelphia, 874 F.2d 156 (3d Cir. 1989)
• Ricci v. Greenblatt, 823 F.Supp. 984 (D.Mass. 1993)
• Ricci v. Greenblatt, 1992 WL 163215 (D.Mass. 1992)
• Ricci v. Greenblatt, 978 F.2d 764 (1st. Cir. 1992)
• Ricci v. Okin, 823 F.Supp. 984 (D.Mass. 1993)
• Ricci v. Okin, 1992 WL 163215 (D.Mass. 1992)
• Ricci v. Okin, 978 F.2d 764 (1st. Cir. 1992)
• S.H. v. Edwards, 886 F.2d 292 (11th Cir. 1989)
• Savidge by Savidge v. Fincannon, 836 F.2d 898 (5th Cir. 1988)
• Savidge by Savidge v. Fincannon, 784 F.2d 186 (5th Cir. 1986)
• Savidge by Savidge v. Fincannon, 768 F.2d 639 (5th Cir. 1985)
• Sharkey v. Kassab , (E.D. PA. 1975)
• Silo v. Comm'r. of Pennsylvania Bureau of Correction, 380 F.Supp. 1340 (M.D. PA. 1974)
• Smith v. Wendell, 390 F.Supp. 260 (E.D. PA. 1975)
• Souder v. McGuire, 516 F.2d 820 (3d Cir. 1975)
• Souder v. McGuire, 423 F.Supp. 830 (M.D. PA. 1976)
• Sudol v. Philadelphia Psychiatric Center , (Philadelphia Common Pleas Ct.)
• Thomas v. Vincent , (D. TX. 1990)
• United States ex rel. McGough v. Hewitt, 528 F.2d 339 (3d Cir. 1975)
• United States ex rel. Souder v. Watson, 413 F.Supp. 711 (M.D. PA. 1976)
• United States. v. Wagner, 1996 WL 148536 (N.D. Tex. 1996)
• United States. v. Wagner, 1995 WL 841924 (N.D. Tex. 1995)
• United States. v. Wagner, 930 F. Supp. 1148 (N.D. Tex. 1996)
• United States. v. Wagner, 940 F.Supp. 972 (N.D. Tex. 1996)
• Vecchione v. Wolgemuth, 426 F.Supp. 1297 (Affirmed) (E.D. PA. (Three-Judge Court) 1977)
• Vecchione v. Wolgemuth, 558 F.2d 150 (3d Cir. 1977)
• Vecchione v. Wolgemuth, 80 F.R.D. 32 (E.D. PA. 1978)
• Vecchione v. Wolgemuth, 481 F.Supp. 776 (E.D. PA. 1979)
• W. v. Wapner , (Phila. Common Pleas Ct.)
• Walton v. Cipriano , (Bucks Cty. Common Pleas Ct.)
• Wong v. Bucks County, Pennsylvania , (E.D. PA. 1982)
• Wyatt v. King, 773 F.Supp. 1508 (N.D. Ala. 1991)
• Wyatt v. King, 811 F.Supp. 1533 (M.D.AL 1993)
• Wyatt v. King, 803 F.Supp. 377 (M.D.AL 1992)
• Wyatt v. King, 793 F.Supp. 1058 (M.D. AL 1992)
• Title: Wyatt v. King, 781 F.Supp. 750 (M.D.AL 1991)
• Wyatt v. Poundstone, 169 F.R.D. 155 (M.D. Ala. 1995)
• Wyatt v. Poundstone, 941 F.Supp. 1100 (M.D. Ala. 1996)
• Wyatt v. Poundstone, 892 F.Supp. 1410 (M.D. Ala. 1995)
• Wyatt v. Rogers, 92 F.3d 1074 (11th Cir. 1996)
• Wyatt v. Rogers, 942 F.Supp. 518 (M.D. Ala. 1996)
• Baldridge by Stockley v. Clinton, 139 F.R.D. 119 (E.D.Ark. 1991)
• In re Welding Rod Products Liability Litigation, 2004 WL 3711622 (N.D.Ohio 2004)
• Scott v. Plante, 532 F.2d 939 (3d Cir. 1978)
• Society for Good Will to Retarded Children, Inc. v. Cuomo, 103 F.R.D. 169 (S.D. N.Y. 1984)
• In re Hop, 171 Cal.Rptr. 721, 623 P.2d 282, 29 (CA. 1981)
• Levine v. State Dept. of Institutions and Agencies, 418 A.2d 229, 84 N.J. 234 (N.J. 1980)
• In re K.K.B., 609 P2d 747 (OK 1980)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 555 F.Supp. 835 (E.D. PA. 1983)
• Halderman v. Pennhurst State School, 555 F.Supp. 1144 (E.D. PA. 1983)
• In re Gross, 382 A.2d 116, 476 Pa. 203 (PA 1978)

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