Nearly 200 attorneys, board of education members, and administrators attended the 56th Annual School Law Forum on Thursday, October 22, 2026, which was co-sponsored by the NJSBA and the New Jersey Association of School Attorneys (NJASA).
The program included presentations on timely topics and critical issues in school law, including: From the Capitol and the Courts: Key Legislative and School Law Updates (John J. Burns, Esq., senior legislative and policy counsel, NJSBA, and Caitlin Pletcher, Esq., legal counsel, NJSBA); Board Meetings are Not a Reality Show: Managing Ethics, Egos & Effective Governance (William S. Donio, Esq., Cooper Levenson, and Kasi Marie Gifford, Esq., Cooper Levenson); and Lawyers Are People Too: Ethical Lawyering with AI, Judges, and the Unrepresented (Patrick F. Carrigg, Esq., NJASA immediate past president, Lenox Law Firm).
Additionally, in order to provide boards of education with practical operational considerations amidst surging operational costs and State aid reductions, a panel consisting of attorneys, a superintendent, business administrators, and a director of a regional cooperative presented on, Doing More with Less: Counseling New Jersey School Districts through Uncertain Financial Times. The panelists included: Adam S. Weiss, Esq., NJASA p, The Busch Law Group, LLC; David L. Disler, Esq., Porzio, Bromberg & Newman; Dr. Daniel Dooley, superintendent of schools, Absecon Public Schools; Janine Byrnes, director, Sussex County Regional Cooperative & president, School Transportation Supervisors of New Jersey; Megan S. Slamb, business administrator, Rockaway Township School District, and Raymond Slamb, business administrator, Vernon Township School District.
Attendees of the 56th Annual School Law Forum were also provided with the opportunity to attend two breakout sessions, and topics included: The Child Victims Act: The Law Then, Now, and Everything the Courts Clarified Along the Way (Jaclyn M. Morgese, Esq., Chasan Lamparello Mallon & Cappuzzo, P.C.); From Concept to Reality: Public Questions and Special Elections (Joseph L. Roselle, Esq., Schenck, Price, Smith & King); Recent Developments in McKinney-Vento & Best Practices for Handling Homelessness Matters (Cameron R. Morgan, Esq., Cleary│Giacobbe│Alfieri│Jacobs│Lagana LLC); Cost Containment Measures and Special Education Placements (Cherie L. Adams, Esq., Adams│Lattiboudere│Croot│Herman); and The Graying of Greene: Appellate Division Revisits Permissible Limits of Political Speech on School Grounds (Arsen Zartarian, Esq., Cleary│Giacobbe│Alfieri│Jacobs│Lagana LLC, and Mark A. Wenczel, Esq., Cleary│Giacobbe│Alfieri│Jacobs│Lagana LLC).
During the day’s program, Nicholas Celso, III, Ed.D., Esq., of The Busch Law Group, LLC, was also presented with the Russell Weiss, Jr., Esq., Distinguished Service Award by the NJASA Board of Trustees. The Russell Weiss, Jr., Esq., Distinguished Service Award is given to a current or former member of NJASA who epitomizes the character and professionalism of the award’s namesake, and who has provided distinguished service to the New Jersey school law community, boards of education and, by extension, the students of New Jersey and the NJASA. Following the presentation of this award, Adam S. Weiss, Esq., NJASA president, The Busch Law Group, LLC, said of his friend and colleague, “Nick Celso was there at the ground floor of New Jersey education law, helping shape a field that barely existed as a specialized area of practice when he started. For more than 40 years, school boards across the State have relied on his judgment, his candor, and his deep understanding of how schools actually work. Equally as important, Nick has been a generous mentor to the attorneys who followed him, many of whom are today’s leaders in the field of school law. Additionally, many of New Jersey’s school leaders today first learned school law from Nick in his classroom at Kean University. Few have given more to this field and Nick is extremely deserving of the Russell Weiss, Jr., Esq. Distinguished Service Award. I am proud to call Nick my colleague and friend.”
The NJSBA and NJASA will next co-sponsor the Spring School Law Forum in June of 2027.
