Candace J. Gomez

Candace is co-chair of the firm's school law practice. She represents school districts, private schools, colleges, universities, corporations and individuals. She has successfully represented clients in the courts of New York State, federal court, New York State Education Department impartial hearings, New York State Commissioner of Education appeals, and U. S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) investigations.

Candace has provided general counsel services and litigation services to some of the largest school districts and universities in New York State. Her experience includes policy development, contracts, school board elections, employee disciplinary proceedings, student residency requirements, special education and student disciplinary hearings. She also has extensive experience defending clients in a variety of civil litigation matters.

Candace routinely serves as an impartial investigator regarding employee complaints involving discrimination and harassment in the workplace. Her investigation experience includes matters involving claims of racial discrimination, ethnic discrimination, gender discrimination, sexual orientation discrimination and sexual harassment. In addition, Candace assists employers with preventing discrimination and harassment complaints by conducting anti-harassment training sessions for employees. Furthermore, Candace advises employers regarding the proper handling of situations before they become official complaints.

Candace has been recognized as a Rising Star on the 2018 list of New York Metro Super Lawyers. Super Lawyers lists New York's top lawyers who have been chosen by their peers and through independent research. Candace has conducted numerous seminars and workshops on various education law topics, including presentations for the Nassau County Bar Association, the Annual School Law Conference hosted by the Nassau and Suffolk Academies of Law, and the Annual School Attorney Law Conference hosted by the New York State Association of School Attorneys.

Candace is the Chair of the Nassau County Bar Association Education Law Committee, and she is also a member of the Long Island Hispanic Bar Association (LIHBA) Board of Directors.

Candace’s early legal training includes a prestigious internship at Rolls-Royce, North America while attending law school. As an undergraduate student, she was selected as the commencement speaker of her university’s graduating class.