What can I solve for you?

Because of my communication skills and diverse experience, I’m able to get education professionals and students to open up about their concerns and then provide sound legal advice to solve problems. I form close relationships with clients, counsel them on an array of special education matters, and conduct investigations to help overcome challenges so they can build and maintain the best learning environments possible.

What's it like to work with me?

I cultivate a high level of trust with my clients so they feel comfortable talking with me about any issue they have. Some have told me, “I didn’t think I’d ever tell anyone that.” They appreciate that I see the overall view of the important, often difficult work they do, which extends beyond the classroom and into the community. Because I offer well-researched legal strategies and present options, clients can make fully informed decisions about the right course of action.

Top Issues in My Practice

Overview

Drawing on her extensive knowledge of and legal insight into special education matters, Rikesha Lane provides practical legal advice and successful, sometimes creative strategies to school districts, county offices of education and special education local plan areas. Rikesha conducts investigations to address Title IX complaints, matters regarding uniform complaint procedures and other areas. She also helps clients respond to compliance complaints from the California Department of Education and investigations with the Office for Civil Rights, and she performs internal inquiries to identify problems or potential ones.

An educator herself – Rikesha teaches legal writing and advocacy at University of Southern California Gould School of Law – she provides training sessions to teachers, service providers and administrators on a range of special education issues. Always staying abreast of the ever-evolving regulatory framework, Rikesha counsels clients on issues involving students with disabilities under the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA), Section 504, which requires free appropriate public education (FAPE), and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), among other laws and regulations.

Clients also turn to Rikesha to guide them through the Individualized Educational Program (IEP) meetings process and represent them in resolution sessions, mediations and administrative due process hearings.

Rikesha’s strong writing skills enable her to draft clear, crisp and, when persuasion is required, convincing prose that distills complex concepts into easy-to-understand language.

Prior to joining F3 Law, Rikesha served clients as a litigator at both boutique and national law firms, all of which provided her with a strong and diverse legal foundation that informs her work today. In addition, she worked with the Office of General Counsel for the California State University. Here she gained experience in the policymaking side of education, which gave her a big-picture perspective of how all the different pieces of the education puzzle fit together.

Experience Highlights

  • Columbia Law Review, Senior Editor

Involvement

Professional Affiliations

  • Black Law Students Association, Member

After School

When I’m not serving clients, I enjoy spending time with my daughter, baking and playing with my cats. I’m also a Crossfit enthusiast.

Education

  • Columbia Law School (J.D.)
  • University of California, Los Angeles (B.A., English and Sociology)

Admissions

Bar Admissions
  • California

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