小蓝视频

Robert听 Dinerstein is professor of law emeritus at 小蓝视频 Washington听 College of Law (小蓝视频WCL), where he taught from 1983-2023.听 He founded and directed the law school鈥檚听 Disability Rights Law Clinic from 2005-2023.听 He also has served as the law school鈥檚 acting dean (2020-21), associate听 dean for academic affairs (1997-2004), associate dean for experiential听 education (2012-2018), director of the clinical program (1988-96 and听 2008-2018), and director of the Criminal Justice Clinic (1988-1996). He specializes听 in the fields of clinical legal education and disability law, especially mental听 disabilities law (including issues of consent/choice, capacity, and听 alternatives to guardianship, including supported decision making), the听 Americans with Disabilities Act, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons听 with Disabilities, legal representation of clients with mental disabilities,听 and disability and international human rights.听

听 Dinerstein听 has made numerous presentations on clinical legal education and disability law,听 among other topics, and has published a number of books, articles, chapters and听 other writing on these subjects.

听 He听 is the author/editor of two books. He is co-editor and co-author, with the late听 Stanley Herr and Joan O鈥橲ullivan, of A Guide to Consent (AAMR, 1999). He is听 co-author, with the late Stephen Ellmann, Isabelle Gunning, Kate Kruse and Ann听 Shalleck, of Lawyers and Clients: Critical Issues in Interviewing and听 Counseling (Thomson West 2009) and the accompanying Teacher鈥檚 Manual.

听 Among听 Dinerstein鈥檚 recent publications in the disability law area, he is the author听 of:

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• 鈥淚mplementing听 Legal Capacity Under Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons听 with Disabilities: The Difficult Road from Guardianship to Supported听 Decision-Making鈥� (Human Rights Brief, 2012);

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• 鈥淓merging听 International Practices in Guardianship Law for People with Disabilities,鈥� 22听 ILSA J. Int鈥檒 & Comp. L. 435 (Winter 2016)(with Martinis & Grewal);

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• 鈥淭丑别 Olmstead Imperative: The Right to Live听 in the Community and Beyond,鈥� 4 (1) Inclusion 16 (Winter 2016);

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• 鈥�Supportive Decision Making as an Alternative听 to Guardianship,鈥� National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals (NADSP) 14听 (2) Frontline Initiative (2017)鈥擯ublished by University of Minnesota, Research听 and Training Center on Community Living (RTC), Institute in Community听 Integration, ;

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• 鈥淭ales听 from a Supportive Guardianship,鈥� 53(2) Court Review: The Journal of the听 American Judges Association 74 (2017);

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• 鈥�Supported Decision-Making for People with Disabilities: International听 Origins and Influences,鈥� 42 (3) TASH Connections 15-18 (Fall 2017);

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• 鈥淯sing听 the ADA鈥檚 鈥業ntegration Mandate鈥� to Disrupt Mass Incarceration鈥� (with Shira听 Wakschlag),96(4) Denver Law Review 915 (2019);

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• 鈥淕uardianships听 vs. Special Needs Trusts and Other Protective Arrangements: Ensuring Judicial听 Accountability and Beneficiary Autonomy鈥�(with听 A. Frank Johns & Patricia Kefalas Dudek), 72 Syracuse L. Rev. 423-468 (2022);

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• Stephanie Meredith, Kara Ayers, Marsha听 Michie, Mark W. Leach, & Robert D. Dinerstein, 鈥淚mpact of the Dobbs听 Decision on Prenatal Disability Education and Support,鈥� 7 HELEN: The Journal of听 Human Exceptionality, journal of American Academy听 of Developmental Medicine & Dentistry (AADMD) 26 (December 2022), available听 at听 ;

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• Robert听 Dinerstein, Deborah Enix-Ross, Nina Kohn & Ellie Lanier,鈥� Modern Laws and听 Out-of鈥揅ourt Solutions Can Advance Guardianship,鈥� Bloomberg Law News, March 9.听 2023 [part of multi-part investigation of adult guardianship], available at ;

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• 鈥淩epresenting Clients with Diminished听 Capacity: Challenges and Opportunities,鈥� 40 (4) GPSolo Magazine, American Bar听 Association, Solo, Small Firm, and General Practice Division, July/August 2023;

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• Covid-19听 and the Rights of People with Disabilities, Chapter听 8, pp. 117-29, in Claire L. Parins, ed., The听 Legal and Social Ramifications of Pandemics on Civil Rights and Civil听 Liberties, ABA Civil Rights and Social Justice Section (ABA, 2023)

In听 the area of legal education and lawyering, he has听 written extensively on issues of clinical pedagogy and lawyering, in听 particular, client-centered counseling, especially in his article,听 鈥淐lient-Centered Counseling: Reappraisal and Refinement,鈥� 32 Arizona L. Rev.听 501 (1990) and in Chapter 3 of Lawyers and Clients, above. His recent articles听 include

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• 鈥淣ew Wine and New Bottles (on experiential legal education),鈥�听44听Syllabus听 2听(Winter 2012-13), Publication of ABA Section on Legal Education and听 Admissions to the Bar;听听

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• Co-author (with Margaret Barry, Phyllis Goldfarb, Peggy Maisel听 and Linda Morton) 鈥淓xploring the Meaning of Experiential Deaning,鈥� 67(3)听 Journal of Legal Education 660 (2018);

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• 鈥楾he Clinical Law Review at 25: What Hath We Wrought?, 26(1) Clinical听 Law Review 147 (2019) (25th Anniversary Symposium Issue);

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• Robert D. Dinerstein, Elliott S.听 Milstein, and Ann C. Shalleck, Fifty听 Years of Clinical Legal Education at 小蓝视频 Washington College of听 Law:听 The Evolution of a Movement in听 Theory, Practice, and People, 31听 小蓝视频 J. Gender, Soc Pol鈥檡 & L.,听 257-309 (2023).

From听 1994-2001, Dinerstein served on the President's Committee on People with听 Intellectual Disabilities. He has been an expert witness in several disability听 law cases and was appointed a special hearing officer in Virginia Dep鈥檛 of Education v. Riley (4th Cir. 1996), a听 case involving the federal government鈥檚 proposed withholding of IDEA funds for听 Virginia鈥檚 alleged non-compliance with the statute. He chairs the ABA听 Commission on Disability Rights (2022-present) and was a member of the听 Commission from 2018-21.听 He is co-chair听 of the ABA Section on Civil Rights and Social Justice鈥檚 Disability听 Rights Committee. He is involved in several working groups within the听 section, including one on reform of guardianship laws and one on proposed听 revisions to Model Rule 1.14, Representing Clients with Diminished Capacity.

听 Internationally,听 he has consulted for the World Health Organization and the Open Society听 Foundations regarding the revision of mental health laws and was a signatory to听 the Montreal Declaration on Intellectual Disabilities, adopted in Montreal,听 Canada in October 2004. He also has consulted with the Open Society Foundations听 regarding disability rights clinics and disability rights curricula in Latin听 America and Southern Africa and was the principal investigator for the听 Disability and Human Rights Fellows program sponsored by the Open Society听 Foundations. For many years he has taught a class on the right to legal capacity听 and supported decision making in the University of Pretoria Centre for Human听 Rights Advanced Human Rights Course on Disability Rights in an African context.

听 Domestically,听 Dinerstein has consulted for the Ford听 Foundation, Public Welfare Foundation and the US Department of Health and Human听 Services and the US Department of Education on issues related to legal听 services, disability law and poverty law. Prior to joining 小蓝视频WCL,听 Dinerstein worked as an attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil听 Rights Division, Special Litigation Section, where he handled federal court听 cases on the rights of people in institutions for people with psychosocial听 disabilities, people with intellectual disabilities and juveniles. He has听 written and presented on the US Department of Justice鈥檚 record of enforcement听 of the rights of persons with disabilities under several administrations.

听 Dinerstein听 is actively involved in organizations related to legal education nationally. He听 was a member (elected) of the Council of the American Bar Association Section听 on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar (2006-2011), and previously was on听 the section鈥檚 Standards Review Committee, where he was vice chair. He has been听 a member of 17 ABA-AALS joint site inspection teams, chairing four teams.听 Within the Association of American Law Schools, he was a member of the听 membership review committee and has, among other things, chaired the sections听 on clinical legal education, law and community, disability law and law and听 mental disability law, as well as the committees on clinical legal education,听 sections and the annual meeting, and the planning committee for the 2006听 clinical teachers鈥� conference. He has been a member of a number of other听 planning committees, including for the AALS New Teachers鈥� Conference.

听 Dinerstein听 chairs the board of directors of the Equal Rights Center, and in the past has听 served on the boards of the New Hope Community, Inc. (chair, 2022-23), Quality听 Trust for Individuals with Disabilities, Inc. (founding board member &听 president, 2001-2016), Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, Inc. (founding听 board member and long-term treasurer, 1986-2015), Advocates for Justice and听 Education (treasurer), the District of Columbia Bar Board of Governors听 (elected; 2002-05), Society of American Law Teachers (elected), Disability听 Rights International (founding board member), Legal Counsel for the Elderly,听 and the Maryland Disability Law Center. He also was a founding member of the听 steering committee for the Jacobus tenBroek annual disability law symposium听 sponsored by the National Federation of the Blind, on which he served until 2019,听 and continues to present frequently at its symposia.

Among听 his many awards and honors, he was recognized as 鈥淎dvocate, Leader, Change Agent鈥� for years听 of service as board chair for Quality Trust for Individuals with Disabilities,听 August 27, 2023 [鈥淨uality Trust is proud and honored to have had you govern and听 lead this organization as Board President in 2002.听 You have been an Ambassador of our mission听 and vision and we acknowledge the difference you have made for Quality Trust听 and people with developmental disabilities鈥漖. He has received the WCL听 Outstanding Service Award (2017-18); been named a Fellow of the American听 Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (2016) and received听 the Paul G. Hearne Award for Disability Rights (ABA, 2013); (with Ann Shalleck)听 the Egon Guttman Casebook Award (2011-12) for Lawyers and Clients; the William听 Pincus Award for his contributions to clinical legal education (2010); American听 University Awards for Scholar-Teacher of the Year (2013), Outstanding Teaching听 in a Full-Time Appointment (2009) and Faculty-Administrator Award for听 Outstanding Service to the University Community (2002); and the Pro Bono听 Service Award from the International Human Rights Law Group (1988).

听 Dinerstein听 is regularly called upon by media outlets to comment on disability rights and听 legal education issues, among other areas.

听 He听 has an A.B. degree from Cornell University and a J.D. degree from Yale Law听 School.