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“McKinley and Ryan offers a rare combination of legal expertise, negotiating skill, and heart.

They represented our son, with the multiple intensive needs his severe autism has imposed on him, with compassion and understanding, even with fervor.

With patience and ingenuity, McKinley and Ryan guided us through a complex, demanding series of IEP meetings, school visits, and expert consultations. Their team approach gave us critical insight at challenging moments.

In the end we received an unprecedented settlement that made it possible to place our son in the most appropriate school we could discover. We think that with McKinley and Ryan’s help, we have had both the courage and the resources to guarantee our son his best possible chance at a meaningful adult life.

If you need help with a Special Education law question, you will want McKinley and Ryan on your side.”

 – Pottstown, PA

“My daugher is multiply disabled with a complicated educational history. After months of searching I retained Nancy Ryan to advocate for an appropiate education for my daughter. I was done watching my daughter remain stgnant, isolated and even regress when she is capable of progress. Nancy presented a complaint encompassing the past 10 years of my daughter’s failed education resulting in an out of court agreement which FINALLY afforded my daughter an appropriate educational placement. I have dealt with many professional agencies throughout the years for special needs and NEVER has anyone come close to getting the scope of this life as Nancy was able to do.

Unfortunately, once that agreement expired, the district was unwilling to continue the placement without a fight. Once again, I retained Nancy for due process proceedings. Nancy’s preparation and submissions to the court were extremely detailed, thorough and factual. Due to her abilities, the hearing officer overwhelmingly found us in favor!

Thanks to Nancy, my daughter is thriving and making meaningful progress!

Words cannot express the gratitude and admiration I have for Nancy Ryan. She is TRULY an advocate for your child!”

– Broomall, PA

“With two autistic children we’ve been involved in our school district’s special education/needs process for many years and are all too familiar with how frustrating attempts to obtain appropriate and effective programs and services can be. However, nothing in our experience prepared us for the shock and turmoil in our lives when we were forced to remove our daughter from school due to egregious behavior of school administrators. In our search for a special education attorney we were immediately drawn to McKinley & Ryan due to their impressive court record as well as their ability to negotiate fair and effective settlements. What we didn’t expect, but have truly come to appreciate, was the level of support and reassurance they provided us during such a trying time. Nancy Ryan became our rock in a time of craziness – patient, supportive, reassuring and always accessible with solid, practical advice. She developed a detailed and impressive knowledge of our daughter’s records, negotiated skillfully and forcefully on our behalf and helped us determine what we really wanted and develop reasonable expectations. It took time and wasn’t easy but Nancy drove through a settlement that has been the foundation of our daughter’s continued personal and academic growth. Nancy and the folks at McKinley & Ryan have our well earned respect and trust and we recommend them without hesitation.”

– Yardley, PA

“Our experience with the McKinley & Ryan firm was a very positive one. We worked closely with Nancy Ryan on a compensatory education claim for my son who was diagnosed with dyslexia and dysgraphia. Nancy set up meetings and reviewed documentation to quickly get up to speed on our situation. She was very pro-active in keeping us well informed along the way. She was a true partner and collaborator and was very easy to work with. Nancy was very prepared for a vigorous hearing and thoroughly presented our case to the hearing officer. Nancy’s in-depth understanding of education law provided us with guidance around our rights which led to a successful victory with the school district. I would highly recommend working with this law firm.”

– Doylestown, PA

“Raising a child with special needs and learning disabilities can be stressful at the best of times. When faced with an educational system who failed to offer an appropriate education for our child; with meeting after meeting not resolving the issues; that stress was intensified. We initially chose McKinley & Ryan because they specialized in Special Education Law, had an excellent track record including Federal Court and when introduced to our case, they got their arms around it effectively. Lorrie and Nancy poured through our records, assessed our intents and capabilities and weren’t afraid to provide us with bold options to meet our son’s needs. They supported our choice and negotiated it through to a successful outcome. They weren’t nearby for us; they aren’t glitzy or grandiose nor are they an enormous impersonal practice. They met with us and our child and were on a first name basis. When the “heat” was turned up; they were immediately available and effectively pro-active. It wasn’t trouble-free due to the circumstances, but Nancy and Lorrie with their team were great, the end results were more than satisfactory. We have and will continue to recommend McKinley & Ryan to others because of our experience.”

– New London Township, PA

“The talented Nancy Ryan interacted so well with our son, the student, and our family during a very trying time. We had exhausted all avenues on our own. She firmly and thoroughly resolved the problems with the school district, allowing our child to achieve his academic goals and beyond. We were also impressed with the caring, professional and knowledgeable staff, on whom we relied to take messages and to answer our questions.”

– West Chester, PA

“Lorrie McKinley is the only spec. ed. attorney I ever recommend. As a co-founder of a school for special needs children and the parent of an autistic son, I have battled for years to help get these kids the educational services they need, and surely, deserve. In my family’s personal experience, only Lorrie, out of three previous lawyers, was able to get the job done. I have also heard my share of horror stories from my network of parents about still other attorneys who have been afraid to “make too many waves” or didn’t bother to dot the i’s and cross the t’s. That’s not Lorrie. She is everything anyone could want in a legal representative: sharp; insightful; knowledgeable; assertive; keenly focused; and reassuringly calm, even when her client (me, I confess) had been reduced to a raving loon. You’ll also find her to be warm and responsive – a pleasure to work with. She’s simply the best.”

– West Chester, PA

“Our organization, a non-profit mental health services agency, has been working with Nancy Ryan for over ten years. The business that we’re in has presented some challenging personnel and operational issues that have required timely and thorough legal assistance. Ms. Ryan has researched and interpreted new and existing laws, assisted with policy creation and provided guidance through legal land mines such as the ADA, FMLA, the Mental Health Procedures Act and many others. We have consistently received ethical, professional and appropriate direction from McKinley & Ryan, who also provide high quality personal service by immediately responding to emails and voice mails when they’re not personally available. It has been an extremely valuable relationship for our organization.”

– Philadelphia, PA