Ballou Education provides expert witness and forensic educational services for legal matters involving school placement and special education. Founder Tamara Ballou has been retained as an expert witness in domestic disputes between parents over their child’s school placement and has testified in Arizona cases. Our forensic work helps courts, mediators, and attorneys understand — with evidence, not opinion — what educational setting genuinely serves a child’s needs.

Our process is thorough and objective. We conduct a comprehensive review of the child’s educational, psychological, and medical records; observe the child at school; interview parents and relevant professionals; and review assessments from psychologists, speech-language pathologists, and other specialists. Each proposed placement is evaluated against the child’s actual documented needs, not against a checklist or a preferred outcome.

We prepare for and give depositions, and we produce a detailed, clearly reasoned written report for the court that explains our findings and recommendations in language judges, mediators, and attorneys can rely on. Our conclusions are grounded in more than 32 years of special education advocacy, IEP and 504 experience, gifted and twice-exceptional (2e) expertise, and firsthand knowledge of how schools actually operate in Arizona and California.

Forensic & Expert Services Include

• Comprehensive review of educational, psychological, and medical records

• School observations of the child in the current placement

• Interviews with parents, teachers, and relevant professionals

• Review of psychoeducational and related assessments

• Individualized analysis of competing school-placement proposals

• Deposition preparation and testimony

• Detailed written reports for the court, mediators, and attorneys

Whether you are a parent seeking clarity in a custody dispute, an attorney in need of a credible expert, or a mediator evaluating competing placement proposals, contact us to discuss your matter and our availability.