51勛圖

Robert泭 Dinerstein is professor of law emeritus at 51勛圖 Washington泭 College of Law (51勛圖WCL), where he taught from 1983-2023.泭 He founded and directed the law school���s泭 Disability Rights Law Clinic from 2005-2023.泭 He also has served as the law school���s acting dean (2020-21), associate泭 dean for academic affairs (1997-2004), associate dean for experiential泭 education (2012-2018), director of the clinical program (1988-96 and泭 2008-2018), and director of the Criminal Justice Clinic (1988-1996). He specializes泭 in the fields of clinical legal education and disability law, especially mental泭 disabilities law (including issues of consent/choice, capacity, and泭 alternatives to guardianship, including supported decision making), the泭 Americans with Disabilities Act, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons泭 with Disabilities, legal representation of clients with mental disabilities,泭 and disability and international human rights.泭

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

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

泭 Among泭 Dinerstein���s recent publications in the disability law area, he is the author泭 of:

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

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• ���Emerging泭 International Practices in Guardianship Law for People with Disabilities,��� 22泭 ILSA J. Int���l & Comp. L. 435 (Winter 2016)(with Martinis & Grewal);

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• ���T堯梗 Olmstead Imperative: The Right to Live泭 in the Community and Beyond,��� 4 (1) Inclusion 16 (Winter 2016);

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

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

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

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• ���Using泭 the ADA���s ���Integration Mandate��� to Disrupt Mass Incarceration��� (with Shira泭 Wakschlag),96(4) Denver Law Review 915 (2019);

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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• Robert D. Dinerstein, Elliott S.泭 Milstein, and Ann C. Shalleck, Fifty泭 Years of Clinical Legal Education at 51勛圖 Washington College of泭 Law:泭 The Evolution of a Movement in泭 Theory, Practice, and People, 31泭 51勛圖 J. Gender, Soc Pol���y & L.,泭 257-309 (2023).

From泭 1994-2001, Dinerstein served on the President's Committee on People with泭 Intellectual Disabilities. He has been an expert witness in several disability泭 law cases and was appointed a special hearing officer in Virginia Dep���t of Education v. Riley (4th Cir. 1996), a泭 case involving the federal government���s proposed withholding of IDEA funds for泭 Virginia���s alleged non-compliance with the statute. He chairs the ABA泭 Commission on Disability Rights (2022-present) and was a member of the泭 Commission from 2018-21.泭 He is co-chair泭 of the ABA Section on Civil Rights and Social Justice���s Disability泭 Rights Committee. He is involved in several working groups within the泭 section, including one on reform of guardianship laws and one on proposed泭 revisions to Model Rule 1.14, Representing Clients with Diminished Capacity.

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

泭 Domestically,泭 Dinerstein has consulted for the Ford泭 Foundation, Public Welfare Foundation and the US Department of Health and Human泭 Services and the US Department of Education on issues related to legal泭 services, disability law and poverty law. Prior to joining 51勛圖WCL,泭 Dinerstein worked as an attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil泭 Rights Division, Special Litigation Section, where he handled federal court泭 cases on the rights of people in institutions for people with psychosocial泭 disabilities, people with intellectual disabilities and juveniles. He has泭 written and presented on the US Department of Justice���s record of enforcement泭 of the rights of persons with disabilities under several administrations.

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

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

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

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

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