Deborah Berger, graduated from Pennsylvania State University (B.S. in Psychology, with highest distinction, Phi Beta Kappa). Ms. Berger received her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Ms. Berger was a Deputy Attorney General with the State of California. Upon Ms. Berger’s move to New York State, she became an associate at the law firm of Bracken & Jacoppi (successor firm Bracken & Margolin). Her area of practice was in general civil litigation. Ms. Berger also held a real estate broker’s license and assisted clients in the area of commercial and residential real estate. Ms. Berger was a faculty member at SUNY at Stony Brook Medical School and for a number of years taught a course in medical ethics for medical students. She also developed and taught a course in Legal and Ethical Issues in Health Care for undergraduate students at Stony Brook. In 1998, Ms. Berger was employed as an attorney with the Long Island Advocacy Center, Inc., a not-for-profit organization that is chartered to protect the rights of students. Ms. Berger has represented students with and without disabilities in all areas of special education and general education law. She has served on the Suffolk County School Based Mental Health Team, as well as Co-Chair of the Suffolk County Bar Association Education Law Committee. Ms. Berger has also been involved in class action litigation to protect the rights of students. Ms. Berger has extensive public speaking experience. She has done trainings in the area of education law for the law guardians of Nassau and Suffolk Counties, probation officers, and in conjunction with the Suffolk County Bar Association, to practitioners in the family court. She also has given seminars and talks to a variety of other groups, including parent groups, attorneys and other professionals in the area of education law. In October of 2004, Ms. Berger together with Ms. Brandow founded the firm of Berger & Brandow, LLP with offices in Stony Brook, New York. Ms. Berger is admitted to practice in California and New York State as well as the Eastern and Southern District Courts of New York. Ms. Berger was formally a board member for the Suffolk County Mental Health Association. Ms. Berger is currently the Co-Chair of the Suffolk County Bar Association Education Law Committee.
Regina Brandow, who earned a B.S. degree in Economics from Dowling College, gained a position after graduation with J. P. Morgan & Co., Inc., a prestigious global financial institution. Ms. Brandow became an officer of the firm where she enjoyed a prosperous career in various departments, including the fixed income trading floor as a research analyst and the legal department as the compliance officer for the SEC, NYSE, AMSE and NASD. During that time, Ms. Brandow attended, and in 1995, graduated law school at the Touro School of Law. During her law school career, Ms. Brandow interned at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Town of Smithtown, Town Attorney’s Office. In 1996 Ms. Brandow was admitted to the State of New York Second Department bar. Ms. Brandow was then employed by Carco Group Inc., an insurance fraud detection and consumer reporting agency as assistant to the chief executive officer where she provided legal counsel. Subsequently Ms. Brandow went into private practice where she concentrated in elder law and corporate law and was of counsel to a number of corporate firms. In 2001 Ms. Brandow joined the Long Island Advocacy Center, Inc. as an education attorney assigned to Nassau & Suffolk counties where her responsibilities included representing students with disabilities in a number of education law related issues, including impartial hearings, appeals to the State Review Office, appeals to the Commissioner of Education, superintendent hearings, and the like. There, Ms. Brandow worked closely with her now partner Deborah Berger, Esq. Ms. Brandow was co-chair of the Suffolk County Bar Association Education Law Committee. Ms. Brandow also serves on the Surrogate Decision-Making Committee on behalf of mentally disabled persons. She has given seminars and talks to a variety of groups, including parent groups, attorneys and other professionals in the area of education law. Ms. Brandow is admitted to practice in New York State as well as the Eastern District Court of New York. Ms. Brandow, who is a rotarian, serves as a board member on the Stony Brook Rotary Club. In addition, she is a committee member for the Surrogate Court Decision Making Committee for Suffolk County.
