Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services Division for Blind Services (DBS) - Randal S. Farber

Randal S. Farber is a transactional attorney, specializing in real estate and business law in Houston. His work ranges from the purchase and sale of office

buildings to the representation of landlords and real estate developers to advising small businesses with their day-to-day legal issues. Randy does not

litigate, and his practice is very document oriented, consisting of the review and drafting of contracts and other legal documents. 

In the early 80s, he was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa, which causes gradual vision loss and frequently, blindness. In the mid-90s, Randy began to

notice significant changes in his peripheral vision, but his sight remained functional and he was able to maintain his routine until the early 2000s. By

2005, Randy had lost so much peripheral vision that he realized he could not drive safely. Faced with daunting questions, Randy was concerned about his

ability to support his family and see his children through college. 

Randy contacted the Division for Blind Services (DBS) in 2005 and underwent extensive evaluation and training. Training was initially two to three days

a week and covered assistive technology for the visually impaired such as talking computers and note takers. The training included life skills where keeping

clothes sorted, cooking, identifying money, and even sewing, were taught. Mobility training and using a cane were also part of life skills taught by DBS,

as was learning Braille. Randy could read through a 12-point font document, but only with great time and effort. DBS helped Randy evaluate different types

of equipment that would help him at work, and in March of 2006, DBS provided him with a closed circuit TV and a computer with customizable software to

magnify and read documents. His DBS case was closed in 2006, but reopened in 2007 when he decided that the computer software he was using was no longer

adequate for his work. Randy now works with JAWS (Job Access With Speech), a software program that reads computer screens and makes personal computers

accessible to blind and visually impaired users. 

With progressive blindness a reality, Randy still considered how best to approach his daily work. His options were relying on screen reading software only,

adding voice command computer software, or integrating Braille. From his prior knowledge of computer technology (he is also a Certified Systems Professional),

Randy knew that voice recognition software would not be precise enough for the level of detail his work required. He decided that becoming proficient in

Braille was essential to a transactional law practice and he became one of the first participants in a Houston DBS pilot program for teaching Braille.

DBS considers 50 Braille words per minute desirable, and 25 to 30 to be functional. Randy’s current rate is 10 to 20 words a minute, and to put that in

perspective, he explained that it took him a full year of reading almost an hour a night to complete his first Harry Potter novel.  Randy’s current goal

is to become proficient enough at Braille to use a refreshable Braille display and embosser effectively. A refreshable Braille display reproduces Braille

from text on the screen, allowing him to read with his hands as well as listen to the computer. An embosser produces Braille documents from a computer.

Randy’s case has been closed since 2008, and when he achieves Braille proficiency, he will contact DBS for reevaluation in order to obtain this equipment. 

Randy is very satisfied with the training he received from DBS. Many of his teachers have coped with blindness from birth, and in this regard, they served

as inspiration. The most important thing he learned from DBS was that losing his sight “simply did not equate with NOT being able to do things.” Randy

has come to understand that aside from a few activities (he suggests perhaps race car driving!) a visually impaired person can essentially do whatever

he or she wants to do. Randy believes the public does not understand that losing one’s sight, or living with drastically diminished eyesight, is not such

a life-changing event after all. 

As he has for his entire career, Randy continues to perform well in a highly demanding profession. In 2004, the year before he called DBS, he was named

a “Texas Super Lawyer” by Texas Monthly. And, despite the worsening of his visual impairment and the time devoted to rehabilitative training, he received

this same award in 2005, 2006, and 2007. Now, at age 51, Randy’s professional resume is growing. A member of the National Association of Blind Lawyers,

a division of the National Federation of the Blind, Randy has been invited to speak at a disability law symposium in Baltimore this year.

Bill Agnell

(512) 377-0586 wk

(512) 484-3268 cell

bill.agnell@dars.state.tx.us