Lori Michelle Gaines

Lori M. Gaines commenced her career in special education as a teacher, having earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Special Education, summa cum laude, from New York University, and a Mater of Arts degree in Special Education, summa cum laude, from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Lori taught in an out-of-district special educatino school in New York City and then in San Diego. During her teaching years she devoted a great deal of her time to advocating for the needs of her students. Lori decided to pursue her advocacy further by attending law school and embarking on a career as a special education attorney. Lori earned her Juris Doctor degree, cum laude, from the Universit of San Diego.

Lori worked for eight years exclusively in the area of special education law at Sussan, Greenwald & Wesler. In June 2014, Ms. Gaines joined Paul Barger to form Barger & Gaines. One of Lori's cases, D.S. and A./S. o/b/o D.S. v. Bayonne Board of Education, was litigated through trial and two rouns of appeal, concluding in a final decision from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. This precedent-setting decision, which positively impacted the ability of parents of students with disabilities to obtain appropriate eduational programs, was named one of the top ten special eduation cases in the country in 2010.