Matejka M. Handley

Matejka Handley focuses her practice on the areas of special education, student services, and charter schools, including issues pertaining to Section 504, student rights and discipline, and student policy compliance. She advocates for school districts in complaint hearings before the Office of Administrative Hearing, the Office for Civil Rights, and the California Department of Education.

Special education disputes often center on questions of placement and what constitutes an appropriate amount of support and services for students. Matejka goes into each case with the firm belief that all involved parties want to provide the best learning environment possible for every child. Her steadiness and compassion in these often fraught and emotional situations help diffuse tensions and preserve relationships with families. Districts value Matejka’s ability to forge acceptable compromises and speedy resolutions.

As a frequent public speaker and presenter on student services webinars and client-specific trainings, Matejka brings a friendly, relatable approach and a broad and deep knowledge base. She believes many topics are often made unnecessarily complex and enjoys creating and presenting material that’s both easily digestible and highly useful.

Matejka’s ease in communicating with individuals from all backgrounds put people at ease and help facilitate sound resolutions and optimal outcomes. She also contributes her clear, linear thought process and excellent organizational skills to every matter.

Before joining F3, Matejka worked at another California education law firm, where she represented local education agencies. Prior to that, she worked as a volunteer attorney for the Solano County Public Defender’s office, advocating for parents during detention, disposition and status-review dependency proceedings. During law school, Matejka volunteered with Bay Area and Sacramento non-profits that addressed dependency and education for children. She also clerked for a judge within the San Francisco Superior Court who presided over dependency matters.