These testimonials or endorsements do not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of a legal matter.



Michelle Gets Results!!!

Recently my son was expelled from the local high school. To complicate matters my son needed to show proof of enrollment in high school to maintain good standing in a court ordered program. My son's court date was fast approaching which caused my wife and me several sleepless nights. We tried calling the school principal several times to resolve the issue without success. As a last resort I searched the internet and found Michelle Ball. What luck! I called Michelle right away and received a return call the same day. I explained my son's situation and Michelle thought she could be of assistance. We scheduled a phone conversation for the next day which was convenient since we live about 90 miles away. The phone conversation lasted about 40 minutes and right away I knew Michelle could help us; what a relief. I authorized Michelle to move forward on my son's case and within forty-eight hours Michelle had drafted and delivered a letter to the school superintendent. The following Monday I received an e-mail from Michelle that said: "We're back in school!" I can't tell you the relief reading that e-mail. My son is back in school, he's in compliance with the court program, he received credit for an additional class the school was contesting, the principal is cooperative and responsive and he's close to graduation. Thanks Michelle!

- A. B.



Michelle Ball: The Best Attorney at Law

Michelle Ball is by far the best attorney ever. She accomplished keeping our son from an expulsion and did it in record time!

We were referred to Michelle by a friend, who talked highly of her and gave us her number. We called Michelle’s office and made an appointment to speak with her by phone. This made it so much easier than taking time off work and traveling 75 miles to consult with her. My wife and I found this very convenient.

On Oct 22nd, my wife, our friend, and I met in our friend’s office for a conference call with Michelle. We told Michelle that our 16 year old son was one of six students in trouble for using, selling, and/or possession of drug(s) (ecstasy). Our school follows the “Zero Tolerance” policy and our son was being recommended for a Mandatory Expulsion.

After 30 minutes of discussion about our son’s situation, Michelle told us our options. My wife and I had a lot to talk about. Hiring an attorney, Michelle, was going to cost money and there was no guarantee that the recommendation of mandatory expulsion would be lifted. We decided our son’s education was invaluable to us and proceeded with hiring Michelle.

On Oct 30th, I emailed Michelle, told her things were not going so well, and we would like to obtain her services.

On Oct 31st, she emailed us a fee agreement and release form to be completed and faxed to her.

On Nov 1st, the completed forms were faxed to her and she was hired.

On Nov. 3rd, she wrote a letter to the school district’s attorney, informing them know she had been retained to represent our son. The letter proceeded with facts that basically lit a fire under their bottoms. I quickly learned that Michelle Ball is aggressive and knows her specialty well.

Michelle and I corresponded the whole time by email (several), spoke 3 times by phone, and never met. This seemed very strange, but I have to tell you it worked well. It took care of business and kept the fees quite low. Take my word for it; this is the way to go.

On Nov. 21st, we celebrated the victory of the dropped expulsion. Our son returned to high school 1 week later.

This is an incredible story. Not everyone or every situation will have this type of prevailing outcome, but I believe you have a fighting chance with Michelle Ball. This is her specialty and she knows it well.

If your child is in a bad predicament as a student and you are not sure an attorney would be of value to your situation, call Michelle. She’s honest, sincere, and understanding, all while remaining professional. She is out to get the best for your child (and you) at the same time not gouging your pocket book for everything in it.

Thanks Michelle for everything. You are by far the best attorney I know, and that’s coming from a person who’s sibling is an attorney.

- S. N.



I am most pleased to recommend Ms. Michelle Ball for legal assistance in school matters.

My wife and I desired our daughter to be admitted to the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) program in our School District. We believed she was well qualified based on a widely recognized test, teacher recommendation, school grades, and State testing. However, the school district used but one narrowly focused test of spatial pattern recognition as the primary entry criteria into the GATE program. Our daughter did not excel in this one area.

Ms. Ball thoroughly researched the School District GATE policy. She conferred with an administrator at the State Board of Education, and with the psychologist who did the IQ test for our daughter. With this information, she wrote a well-reasoned letter, which forcefully argued for our daughter’s admission to the GATE program. She had also had the psychologist write a letter on our daughter’s behalf.

Armed with the above, Ms. Ball, my wife, and I met with the School District officials. Although the District did not wish to change its policy, we got our daughter admitted to the GATE school and into GATE and honors classes.

Ms. Ball aggressively represented our child’s case to the School District, with a positive result. I highly recommend her for legal matters involving schools.

Sincerely, MAW, M.D.

Hi Michelle:

I wanted to let you know that my grandson is going to graduate in May. He passed all of his finals and will for sure graduate on the 29th. He is like a little boy ‘cause he is so happy to get out of high school. Now he knows for sure he has made it. He has been at a loss for words lately.

The school has also backed off a whole lot. The adult involved does not talk to or sit in the same room or even look at him anymore. I don’t know how to thank you for all the help or work you have done. You are the best and a very good friend to us. Without you he would not have gotten this chance to graduate or go this far. For all these years we have fought and had to call on you 3 times in 13 years. We feel as a family you are a part of us too. We might still need you for my younger grandson, although since you came to help on my older grandson, the school has somewhat backed off on the younger one. But you never know what might happen. You deserve so much. You saved us from great loss and I THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

Also, everyone else is thankful that he is almost done too. The school is paying for his cap and gown... is that cool or what? I think they may also be paying for his senior field trip too. See you did make a difference in our lives! Thank you again for giving him this chance and giving us our grandson and son back. He is now thinking about his future employment. He is looking forward and does not want to look back. He feels like he has a new life and that he can learn more as he goes. May God Bless you many times over again. Lots of love to all of you - CW & DL



We were referred to Michelle Ball from two other families in our county regarding school/district related issues. After our initial telephone consultation with her, we were confident in what our outcome would be. Ms. Ball’s knowledge of our inter-district issues really benefited our situation. She was extremely professional and expeditious in handling our matter. The requests presented by her, which our school had previously denied, were immediately granted. We truly appreciate all of her help and would definitely use her services in the future if needed. – DR and LR



Michelle,

First, I want to thank you for all your efforts on our behalf. If you would like a reference I would be happy to give you one, in letter form or by personal call.

My son is now placed at a facility in X City by the school district and county mental health, as of last week. They are paying for this placement. The best part is that he is doing VERY, VERY well there, and although it has only been a week, there is a dramatic difference in him. This placement is very small, only 36 boys max, is day treatment in a home-like setting, and they use animals in the therapy. He is already doing his schoolwork which for months at the other schools he refused daily.

I wanted you to know that everything worked out very well, and we are pleased with the result. Although it was very costly in the interim, our goal was to get our son into an appropriate placement, which this is. I do believe that if we had not employed your services, we may not have had the same result. I have recommended you to others, and they will probably refer clients to you.

Thanks,
PK



Michelle helped us through 2 significant events during the time my son was in school until he graduated this past June. She gathered files and files of documentation, rules and regulations and policy and procedures. She covered every base.
We got the justice that my son was entitled to and made sure all his civil rights were kept intact.

I will forever be so grateful to Michelle for giving us the encouragement we needed at a time when we thought we had no where else to turn and no one to support our concerns.
I personally have already recommended her to 2 other families and will continue to so when I am asked.

Again, hiring Michelle Ball not once but twice was the best decision I made during my son’s duration in middle school as well as high school. We were all thrilled, including Michelle, the day my son graduated in June O8.

Thank You Michelle!!!
–CKM



Michelle Ball has on more than one occasion “Come to our rescue” dealing with School District issues. Unfortunately, these days school districts are so bound up by their own educational codes that they no longer have the flexibility to make decisions on their own. I can’t tell you the number of times I had school administrators tell me “Their Hands Are Tied”.

Michelle finds ways to use the very same educational codes to seek fair and equitable resolutions to administration and educational issues. Essentially, untying the hands of the administrators to allow them to develop creative solutions to the many types of problems they are faced with.
I tell anyone who is faced with school administration or educational problems to “Seek Council” and more specifically, call Michelle Ball!

–JSG



Michelle.....our family wants to thank you for all of your hard work on this matter........the letter you wrote is outstanding and well thought out.....the most important thing to us is that our son’s side of the story is now well documented and will remain in his permanent record.....he is happy at his new school and doing very well.......so everything seems to be coming together despite the stress we’ve all been through.....

Sincerely,
–KP, KB, and WB



Even though I knew my daughter's suspension was wrong, it wasn't even about the suspension any more, it was about making sure schools are checking and documenting their facts and doing the right thing for all the children involved. This was clearly not happening.  When I picked legal counsel out of the yellow pages, I really scored when I found Michelle Ball. She was straightforward, knowledgeable, and understanding of my situation. There were no delusions however of an easy win. She started by drafting a letter to the school district stating my wishes and requesting a hearing if they would not comply. Of course, as expected, they did not lift the suspension and scheduled a hearing. Although Michelle diligently helped prepare me for the hearing, I can't tell you how relieved I was to get her phone call the day before the hearing telling me that the district was removing the suspension and we had won. Miracles do happen – that miracle was finding Michelle Ball. She treated me with respect and gave powerful legal structure to my words and actions.– DG

We would like to thank you very much for the very successful resolution of our case. The outcome far exceeded our expectations and we could not be any more pleased. We appreciate the professional manner in which you handled our case and although we certainly hope that we never require your services again, we would certainly refer you to anyone that we know whose child might find themselves in the same position that our son was in. Again thank you for your help. –GB & SB

Thanks to Michelle Ball for successfully taking on my son’s case who was just weeks away from graduating High School when he was faced with expulsion, because a knife was found in my car. His name had “come up” along with 6 other students in a conversation with the V.P. and a highly intoxicated student found passed out on the bathroom floor in the gym. He granted consent for the V.P. to search my vehicle for open alcohol knowing full well that there was none. Imagine our shock and surprise when the V.P. pressed charges for finding a small knife that I’ve had in my car for 20 years! Not only did she [Michelle Ball] get the school district to drop their pursuit of expulsion charges, but she was instrumental in getting his case thrown out of court as well. My son was able to finish school through Home Instruction and received his diploma from the school he had been attending for 4 years. A thousand “THANK YOU’S” for helping him graduate!!!
–H.F.K.



Michelle was my ray of light in a very dim situation. My daughter was facing expulsion of two semesters, one school year, her junior year. The school board superintendent had just informed me that we would have the option of my daughter being home schooled or sent to an alternative school where “the attending students had just been released from jail or were one foot from being put into jail”. When I had suggested putting her in another school inside the school district he flatly said “no”. That she couldn’t go to another school in our district or any other public high school in the state! This sentence had been given due to finding smoking paraphernalia in her drawer at summer camp before the school year started, finding a cigarette lighter in her backpack the previous school year and smoking on campus the beginning of her freshman year.

When I stated I wanted a lawyer, the superintendent told me I could, however that it had never been done before! The hearing was in two weeks. I got Michelle’s name from a lawyer friend of mine. I had never heard of an Educational Lawyer. Michelle informed us of our rights, found errors in the written statements the superintendent had given us then advised us on the possible outcomes. Immediately the school district started finding other options. The expulsion was reduced to a suspended expulsion for one semester. My daughter was admitted into a nationally recognized charter school in our district and is well on her way to graduation with honors. I couldn’t be more pleased. –C.W.

Dear Michelle, I was very worried my son would be expelled from school for being intoxicated at a school football game. It was his first mistake and the school didn’t care if my son was a straight "A" student and had never been in trouble before. They had zero tolerance. I didn’t know who to turn to until I was referred to your office by my legal membership plan. When we first met, you gave us confidence that the matter could be settled outside of a board hearing because of your expertise, and you stayed on top of our case even with your caseload. You were easy to contact and resolved the matter before the scheduled hearing. My son was administratively transferred to another school instead of being expelled for the remainder of the year and has now returned to his former school. He learned a valuable lesson, is back on track, and has kept his grades up. Thank you for your help. -V.B.



Dear Michelle Ball,

Sometime ago you performed some work for me and I just wanted to thank-you for everything you did for me. I received my degrees and my first semester of credentialed teaching was intense. 500 children in one choir, seventy-five children in another choir, 200 children in band (so I made four marching bands), six hundred children in general music (three hundred on recorder) and high school and junior high school marching band games and rehearsals.

I thought I was going to collapse after Christmas. I am publishing my second set of books: Method Books for Band and I am applying for jobs to get back to Sacramento as a teacher.

I want to thank-you once again for everything you did for me.

Sincerely, Jamie Barnes

I hired Michelle Ball to assist me in my education case with my child who at the time was attending a private school. Ms. Ball was recommended to me by two different people who had engaged her services for situations similar to my child’s. Ms. Ball and her staff were courteous, extremely sensitive and highly professional in carrying out their commitment to get the best possible outcome. Moreover, Ms. Ball, besides having a “legal eagle quality” with Education Law, is very knowledgeable and well-versed on how the different school districts and private schools operate in the surrounding counties in the Central Valley and Sacramento area.  I learned a great deal from her that was helpful in tactical decisions in my child’s case. .  Because of Ms. Ball’s experience and legal expertise, the outcome of my case was beyond my expectations given that she was dealing with a private school. I would, without any reservations, recommend her to any parent who would be in need of her very valuable service. -M.B.



Michelle was able to help our family when my 16 year old son was being considered for expulsion from high school. Our son had been behaving poorly and was involved in the theft of school property. To make matters worse he had been fishing the day before and had a small fishing knife in his back pack. Michelle was able to work with the school district and our son was placed on suspension, and we agreed that he would not return to his high school for one semester in lieu of expulsion. We were very pleased with this outcome as he will not have an expulsion on his record. –S.S.



Hi everyone, my name is Chris and I called Michelle a few years back to help me deal with a situation that I went through with a paramedic program that I was in and later went on to complete successfully. I enrolled in the program about four years ago and finished the first two phases of the program and was in the middle of the third and final phase when I began running into some serious issues with the school and the way things were being handled. My hours were not being counted and there were some other issues too. I went up the chain, within the school, and my problems were not being addressed. I was working a lot and had invested everything I had saved toward getting through the program, so when I felt I could no longer risk waiting to see what would happen, I left the program and accepted a job with the fire department. Shortly after starting the fire academy, I received a letter from the school saying I had been dismissed from the program. I was allowed to write three appeal letters, so I did, and every time I was denied. So upon completion of the fire academy I contacted Michelle and explained the situation, and provided her all the documentation that I had. Within two weeks or so I was readmitted and since then I went on to complete my internship and have held my license for about a year now.  You have no idea how important receiving my medic license has been to me and I have to say without Michelle it would not have happened. Anyways, thank you Michelle, more than you'll ever know...and by the way, Michelle's fees were very reasonable.
–C.C.



Dear Michelle, I am writing you to tell you that my husband and I are deeply grateful to you and your staff for your devotion and professionalism.
 
We were at our wits end on trying to resolve our sons educational needs with the public school system.  We thought schools where there to educate and help us.  We found however, the bureaucracy and legalities involved were overwhelming and that the school and the District where not interested in helping us or our son but instead interested in their own agenda.
 
After years of advocating for our son, we finally decided to get some professional help.  After finding your listing in the Yellow Pages under Educational Law, I felt that maybe finally we had found someone that had an understanding of what our struggle had been.  Immediately after the first phone call I felt relief.  After speaking to your secretary I thought, "finally someone that can help".
 
My thoughts where right.  The best decision I made was making that phone call that day.  Once you got involved everything changed.  Thanks to your help our son is now successful in school.  He is getting the help he needs and is on his way. His self esteem and motivation has changed due to the changes that the school has made.
 
I know we would have never gotten our sons educational needs met without your involvement.  After years of trying I know this is true. I speak to many parents and grandparents who are going insane dealing with the current school system and I tell them my story, our sons story, and how are lives changed after getting your help. 
 
There are too many children who are suffering needlessly and parents who worry about them.  Parents who try hard to work with their local schools, believe what they say, as we did, but get nowhere.  Our son is on the road to success because I made that call, that day two years ago. I feel relieved to know there is someone in his corner other than his father and I. I no longer feel helpless because I have the comfort of knowing if I need help, I have found a great recourse.
 
That great recourse is you, Michelle Ball. I know without your expertise and professionalism we would never have been able to have our sons specific needs met. Our family thanks you. 
 
Thank you.    
 
–G.B.



Michelle Ball took our case and successfully obtained an alternative that was better than the options that we were given by the school.  Now our child is on track to graduate while remaining in the public school system.  She also informed us of rights that our child has in school and helped obtain a special plan so that the school can better accommodate our child in the learning process.  Michelle is the greatest! –D.W. & M.W.    
 


Michelle Ball is a very good attorney to represent families that face education discipline disputes with school districts. Michelle will take the time to educate you on what to expect, along with being a great advocate for you when dealing with school districts. She will also give great advice regarding what possible outcomes you can expect depending on what discipline action you are facing. Our son was initially charged with drug possession with intent to sell at a Sacramento-area high school and facing not only suspension but also possible expulsion. With Michelle’s help, we identified errors in the school’s incident report and got the intent to sell charge removed from his record. In addition, the school district dropped their pursuit of an expulsion hearing for our son. As a result, I highly recommend Michelle Ball to represent your interests to the highest degree during times when families often do not know what to do or who to believe. –W.H.    
 


These testimonials or endorsements do not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or prediction regarding the outcome of a legal matter.