John Cafferky, a partner at Blankingship and Keith, leads the education law and litigation practice group. John’s career has focused on education law and the defense of public, charter, and private schools since 1986.
John represents school clients in administrative proceedings with the EEOC, the Office of Civil Rights of the United States Education, and other state and federal agencies, in employee grievance proceedings, and in the state and federal trial and appellate courts in Virginia and the District of Columbia. Over the years, John has developed particular expertise in the education of students with disabilities, pursuant to state law, the IDEA, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
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As general counsel to several Northern Virginia school boards, John provides legal advice on a wide variety of topics critical to the operation of the public schools, including budgetary and employment issues, FOIA compliance, contract negotiations for superintendents and other administrators, the development and implementation of policies and regulations, the acquisition and operation of school facilities and schools, litigation issues and school board meeting procedures. Over the course of his career, John has defended numerous lawsuits and appeals arising under both state and federal law concerning legal issues of particular significance to public school divisions.
John is AV-rated by Martindale and Hubbell, has been listed since 2008 in Best Lawyers in America, is a co-author of the Virginia School Law Deskbook, has served on the Board of Directors of the Virginia Council of School Attorneys and is a member of the National School Board Association’s Council of School Board Attorneys. John is listed in Washingtonian Magazine in the Top 1% of Lawyers in Washington, Education Issues.
