Chris Elyse Vance

Chris Vance was a lifesaver in helping us navigate the complicated world of IEPs and school services. She was kind and provided us excellent resources and sound advice to help our child. We would not have been successful in our pursuit of accommodations, appropriate instruction, and the right of FA...PE for our child without Chris Vance. Her knowledge and experience was invaluable. We have and will continue to recommend her to other families who have children with special needs.

I have always heard great things about Chris Vance but never thought I would have to call her. My son's school district wanted to appeal the favorable outcome of his due process hearing in federal court. When I called Mrs. Vance's office, I received an immediate response. When we met in person, I fel...t like she was the only person who saw the potential in my son. I also felt like she was truly advocating for him. We worked together on the response to the appeal, and she was able to get the case dismissed. With Mrs. Vance, it's not about the money; it's all about what's best for your child and the family. Today, my son is doing well in school and I am so thankful for Mrs. Vance to agreeing to take my son's case. I would refer Mrs. Vance to any family in need of top notch, professional legal advice regarding special education issues.

I was frustrated at first because Ms. Vance was not able to take my son's case right away; however, once we got started I realized, not only was it worth the wait, but the wait was because when she works on a case, she gives it 110%. I've never seen anything like it. She is an absolute expert in t...he law and executes her knowledge effectively and with conviction. What is also a bonus is that she has a very pleasant "bedside manner" which is not to be said of all attorneys. Thanks to Ms. Vance's strong advocacy (and the help of invaluable office manager, Craig!), the entire trajectory of my son's life was changed. My son is severely disabled and he will never know what Ms. Vance did for him. But I will never forget it.

We went to Chris as a last resort. Our son was 16 years old, had just failed the eight grade and was reading at a first-grade level. He has an Autism Spectrum Disorder and an above average IQ. He was shuffled from school to school, program to program and was completely left behind. We spent upwar...ds of $30,000 to try to help our son read but the school system just wanted to push him through with an extra hour or reading support a week. We spent countless hours in IEP meetings with administrators that wanted to pass the buck and hopefully apse us just enough to get rid of us. The first think that Chris told us was that our son was entitled to a free and appropriate education and that he had not received that. She helped us develop a plan to support our son, helped us figure out the cost to implement that plan, advised us of her expected fee and gave us a timeline to implement. Most importantly, she told us that there was no guarantee but that she would fight with everything she had to get the support that our son deserved. In the end, we were successful, and our son is now receiving the support that he needed. I have read through several negative reviews on this site and they really do not characterize our experience with Chris. If you are expecting someone to work for free and play nice with the school district, perhaps Chris is not for you. If your child has a true need that is not being met and you are looking for someone to fight to the fullest extent possible, in an ethical and professional manner, I would complexly recommend Chris. She was always honest, responsive and reasonable with our family. Her intervention changed our son’s life!

Chris Vance is an Amazing Educational attorney as well as a true professional. I should know. Chris Vance has been representing us since 2011. When I first contacted her, we had a lengthy phone conversation, free of charge, to discuss the issues we were having with the School District and to det...ermine if hiring an attorney was the appropriate action to take. After our discussion, it was clear we needed an attorney and she believed she could help us. She was AMAZING. Our son was awarded 5 years of compensatory education and services in our IDEA hearing ( 7 day hearing I might add). Chris helped us transition into our 5 year program and took a personal interest in my sons progress and well being. Having a masters in Education gives Chris an additional edge combined with her years of representing students in cases against school districts she gets results. Her knowledge and expertise is invaluable in helping to "fight for services". Chris Vance has a stellar reputation and in my opinion, she can shake the Districts to the core when she agrees to take a case. I have to question the poor reviews... After working with Chris from 2011 until and through today 2019 ( we have a civil case pending) ...It appears there may be some false reviews. When one is as successful at what they do as Chris Vance, Districts and other attorneys are bound to want to damage her stellar reputation.