About
A practice built around one purpose: representing students and families when an institution puts a degree, a record, or a future at risk.
Zachary Gaynor, Esq.
Zachary Gaynor is a students' lawyer — so much so that it is the name his practice carries. A Students' Lawyer is an education-law practice built around one purpose: representing students and families when an institution puts a degree, a record, or a future at risk. The practice is concentrated on education law and student–university disputes — including the matters that cross issue areas, where a conduct charge, an accommodation failure, and an academic decision turn out to be the same story — so the lawyer who takes your call is the lawyer who handles your case.
These are intensely fact-specific situations. The same charge or policy can play out very differently depending on the school, the record, and the timing — and the real stakes often cannot be reduced to a dollar figure. A dismissal, a misconduct finding, or a denied accommodation can derail a degree, a residency or match, a license, or a career. I treat that as the starting point, not an afterthought.
My background spans law, accounting, and health law — a bachelor’s degree and a Master of Accounting from the University of Florida, a J.D. from UF Law, an LL.M. in Health Law, and a Florida CPA license — which helps me read the institutional and regulatory machinery behind a case: how a program documents a decision, and how it is bound by its own policies and by federal law.
I work directly with every client, and I represent students in campus proceedings and — where a school crosses a legal line — in litigation. I am actively litigating student matters right now — including cases in both federal and state court against universities, raising disability, due-process, and breach-of-contract claims, and a putative class action brought on behalf of students. Protecting those students' rights is not a sideline; it is the same work this practice does every day. When you call, you reach the lawyer handling your matter, not an intake queue.
J.D., University of Florida Levin College of Law
LL.M. in Health Law, Seton Hall · M.A. in Psychology
Certified Public Accountant (Florida)
The Florida Bar
Bachelor’s degree and Master of Accounting (M.Acc.)
S.D. Fla. · M.D. Fla. · N.D. Fla. · U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit
A campus decision can follow a student for years.
This practice can be flexible in a way a larger firm often cannot. Depending on the matter, that can take any of these forms.
From the very beginning
The earlier I'm involved, the more options stay open. I can step in at the first notice, charge, or letter — before a deadline closes or a statement is given — and help shape the matter from the outset.
Behind the scenes
Where a process limits an advisor's speaking role, I work in a consulting capacity — reading the policies, preparing you and your statement, and drafting submissions and appeals — without ever appearing.
Complex, high-stakes matters
Cases that cut across academic, disciplinary, civil-rights, and financial lines — the ones that don't fit a single box — are squarely the work this practice is built for.
Second opinions
If you already have counsel, or simply want another read before you act, I provide focused second opinions at a reasonable, agreed cost.
Ongoing & retainer counsel
For students, families, and advisors who want a lawyer on call as a situation develops, I'm available on an ongoing or retainer basis.
Worked out to fit
The scope and the fee are discussed up front and structured to fit the matter. The goal is a practical arrangement that gets the situation handled.
The scope of any engagement and the fee are set out in a written agreement. Contacting the practice does not create an attorney–client relationship.
Have a situation you'd like to discuss?
Reach out about a record review — a substantive, no-time-limit look at your matter and the deadlines you’re facing.