Edward A. Conners (Tony)
3112 Windsor Road, Suite A, #315
Austin, Texas 78703
Phone: (512) 626-7469
Facsimile: (512) 524-0070
Email: tony@tonyconnerslaw.com
Practice Description
While in law school, Tony clerked for two years with a firm that almost exclusively represented school districts. He began practicing law in New Mexico with Hinkle, Cox, Eaton, Coffield & Hensley in 1989. In 1990, he returned to Austin and associated with Gray & Becker from 1990-1993, where he handled employment cases for individuals and governmental entities, including law enforcement officers, police departments, and counties. In 1993, Tony joined the Texas Education Agency as an Assistant Chief Counsel, overseeing litigation involving the Agency and representing the Agency in employment and special education matters. In 1996, he joined the Brim, Arnett firm, where he represented individuals in employment matters, including public educators and law enforcement officers. On November 1, 2014, Tony withdrew as a partner with Brim, Arnett & Robinett to open his own practice.
Tony is licensed to practice law in all courts of Texas and New Mexico
Practice Areas
Employment grievances, and litigation involving:
Civil Rights and Discrimination
Termination of Employment
Whistleblower (state and federal)
Certification and Licensure
Contracts
Due Process issues
Litigation involving:
Teachers in state criminal cases, as well as school board members and superintendents in civil litigation
Jury trials and appellate representation in lawsuits brought under the Texas Whistleblower Act, the ADA, Title VII, and FSLA
Police officers in grievances, state licensing cases, and in civil litigation before federal and state courts
Representing educator cases and nurses in contested licensing cases before State Office for Administrative Hearings.
Representative Cases
A. Termination/Suspension Cases
1. Ysleta ISD v. Al Diaz, #137-LH-0697 (TEA IHE, J. Parra, August 1997) (School
board rejected recommendation to suspend Teacher).
2. Lyford ISD v. Cecilia Vasquez, #154-LH-897 (TEA IHE, J. Koetler, December
1997) (No “good cause” to terminate Teacher who remained certified, despite
permit for Math teaching assignment expiring).
3. Laredo ISD v. Nora Santos, #053-LH-0110 (TEA IHE, M. Rains, April 2010) (No
good cause to suspend Principal for failure of subordinate to report child abuse).
4. Hidalgo ISD v. Perry Dornbusch, #078-LH-301 (TEA IHE, V. Guerra, July 2001)
(No good cause to terminate Band Director based on alleged misconduct with
students).
5. Southside ISD v. Judith Hyland, #092-LH-0506 (TEA IHE, M. Trevino, August
2006) (No good cause to terminate Teacher for alleged possession of drug
paraphernalia).
6. Mercedes ISD v. Gregario Montemayor, #029-LH-1100 (TEA IHE, K.
Meinardus, February 2001) (No good cause to terminate teacher for alleged
misconduct of students).
7. Lampasas ISD v. Wendy Gholson, #034-LH-1109 (TEA IHE, D. Walker, January
2010) (No good cause to terminate Teacher for alleged misconduct with a
student).
8. Zapata ISD v. Diane Brandon, #253-LH-0712 (TEA IHE, P. Palafox, August
2012) (No good cause to terminate administrator based on contract provision
from previous school year).
B. TEA Appeals
1. Perry Dornbusch v. Hidalgo ISD, #018-R2-1001 (Commr. Of Educ. December
2001) (Teacher’s termination reversed based on school board’s actions in
disregarding IHE’s decision).
2. Bernie Craig v. North Forest ISD, #175-R10-699 (Commr. Educ. 2000) (§7.057 appeal granted due to the board’s failure to hold timely Level III hearing).
3. Magdalena Keller v. Harlandale ISD, #041-R3-0306 (Commr. Of Educ. 1996) (Settlement favorable to teacher after proposed decision issued upholding 7.057 appeal over loss of bilingual stipend).
4. Patricia Leo v. Brooks County ISD, #059-R1-505 (Commr. Educ. July 2005)(Principal’s non-renewal reversed based on a lack of substantial evidence).
5. Emilio Barrientes v. Beeville ISD, #06-R1-505 (Commr. Educ., July 2005)(Counselor’s non-renewal reversed based on district’s procedural violations).
6. Javier Guerra v. Brooks County, #094-R1-0612 (Commr. Educ. 2012) (Non-renewal reversed due to procedural failures of the school district).
7. Diana Brandon v. Zapata ISD, #005-R2-09-2012 (Commr. Educ. November 2012) (Administrator’s termination reversed based on district’s actions in rejecting the IHE’s decision).
C. SBEC Contested Cases
1. Joelle Ogletree v. SBEC, #701-06-1196 (SOAH 2006) (Teacher’s certification was not revoked or sanctioned as sought by TEA based on alleged misconduct with student).
2. Michael Floyd v. SBEC, #701-09-1575 (SOAH 2010) (Teacher’s certification was not revoked or sanctioned as sought by TEA based on alleged misconduct with students).
D. Overtime Cases and Other Civil Cases1. Roberto Aquirre v. Eagle Pass ISD, Civil Action # DR-00-CA-24-AML U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas (Del Rio Division, 2001) (Successful settlement on behalf of 64 bus drivers for overtime violations).
2. Agustin Gonzalez and Mark Gonzalez v. Driscoll ISD, Civil Action C-01-566, U. S. District Court for Southern District of Texas (Corpus Christi Division, 2012) (Successful settlement for paraprofessional/bus drivers for overtime violations).
3. Aaron Bonds v. Robstown ISD, Civil Action 06-CV-72 U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas (Corpus Christi Division 2006) (Successful settlement for paraprofessional/coach for overtime violations).
4. Jorge Franco v. Edcouch-Elsa ISD, Civil Action 7:12-CV-00298, in U.S. District Court for Southern District of Texas (McAllen Division 2013) (Successful settlement of paraprofessional/coach’s overtime claims).
5. Taylor Rivera v. Jessie Maldonado, et al, Civil Action A07CA334LY, in U. S. District court for Western District of Texas (Western Division) (Successful settlement of “Doe v. Tyler” claims arising out of “student-on-student” violence).
6. Enrique Gallegos v. Donna ISD, et al, in the 93rd District Court in Hidalgo County, Texas #4503-94-B (Successful settlement of due process and legal malpractice claims of former superintendent).
7. Sylvia Llanes v. Corpus Christi ISD, #13-00-463-CV (Tex. App. – Corpus Christi 2001) (Texas Whistleblower Appeal in which the reporting requirements were further expanded).
8. Michele Dowdy v. Houston ISD, #1999-29965. In the 270th District Court of Harris County, Texas (ADA “failure to accommodate” case on behalf of classified employee).
9. Valeriano Herrera, et al v. Eagle Pass ISD, #07-06-00303 CV, 7th Texas Court of Appeals (Summary judgment reversed on Plaintiffs’ State Constitutional claims).
10. Edcouch-Elsa ISD v. Jose Frank Perez, in the 93rd District Court in Hidalgo County, Texas #C-2044-13-B. (Successful defense in a declaratory action brought by Edcouch-Elsa ISD to invalidate Defendant’s contract as Superintendent).
Activities and Affiliations
Member of the School Law and Solo Practice Sections of the State Bar
Served on the Board of Directors for the School Law Section of the State Bar
Educational and Professional Background
Texas Tech University, B.A., Economics (Magna Cum Laude), 1984
University of Texas Graduate School, Government Department 1985-1986
University of Texas School of Law, J.D., 1989