Maria E. Gless

Partner

Ms. Gless is a partner in the Riverside office of Best Best & Krieger LLP.  Ms. Gless graduated with distinction from McGeorge School of Law in 1996 where she was the recipient of the Verne Adrian & Annabel McGeorge Academic Achievement Scholarship and was a member of the Traynor Honor Society.  Ms. Gless received the American Jurisprudence Award for Remedies and was a recipient of the Sacramento County Bar Association Summer Fellowship in 1994.  She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of California at Los Angeles in 1992.

Since joining Best Best & Krieger in 1997, Ms. Gless has been involved in representing school districts in numerous mediations and hearings before the Special Education Hearing Office.  Ms. Gless’ practice also includes representing educational clients in litigation matters in both State and Federal Courts.  She advises a number of school districts in the areas of student rights, expulsion proceedings, early intervention and inclusion, civil rights’ issues, as well as in other special education related legal matters. 

Ms. Gless is a regular presenter at conferences and seminars dealing with student issues and special education law.  In 1999 she co-authored Perspectives on Testifying at a Due Process Hearing:  The School Psychologist as a Witness, presented to the National Association of School Psychologists in Las Vegas, Nevada.  In January 2001 she co-authored and presented Perspectives on Testifying at a Due Process Hearing:  How to Become an Effective Witness for the Best Interests of the Child, at the Association of California Administrators in Monterey, California.  The presentation was updated and presented in January 2002.

Ms. Gless has also presented many seminars discussing the topics of the Individualized Education Program meeting, assessment procedures and disciplinary procedures, including the manifestation determination procedures.  She is also co-author of A Legal Overview of Burden of Proof in Special Education Disputes published by LRP Publications 2003.

Ms. Gless is a member of the State Bar of California, the Riverside County Bar Association, the National Council of School Attorneys and the California Council of School Attorneys.

Education

• University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, J.D. (1996)
• University of California, Los Angeles, B.A.

Bar Admissions

• California (1996)

Court Admissions

• California (1996)

Awards

• American Jurisprudence Award for Remedies
• Sacramento County Bar Association Summer Fellowship (1994)

Memberships

• Riverside County Bar Association
• National Council of School Attorneys
• California Council of School Attorneys

Authorships

• A Legal Overview of Burden of Proof in Special Education Disputes , LRP Publications (2003)
• Perspectives on Testifying at a Due Process Hearing: The School Psychologist as a Witness, co-authored (1999)
• Perspectives on Testifying at a Due Process Hearing: How to Become an Effective Witness for the Best Interests of the Child, co-authored (January 2001 )

Speaking Engagements

• Perspectives on Testifying at a Due Process Hearing: How to Become an Effective Witness for the Best Interests of the Child, Association of California Administrators in Monterey, California (January 2001)
• Perspectives on Testifying at a Due Process Hearing: The School Psychologist as a Witness, National Association of School Psychologists in Las Vegas, Nevada (1999 )