Sometimes, despite the best and thorough efforts of school employees, parents of students receiving special education services will file a request for a due process hearing (usually known as a “due process complaint”). When...more
The United States Supreme Court issued a decision in Perez v. Sturgis Public Schools, No. 21-887, opening the door for future claims against schools for compensatory monetary damages. In its unanimous opinion, the Supreme...more
The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of a deaf student in Perez v. Sturgis Public Schools, 143 S. Ct. 81 (U.S. 2022), where the Court held that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) exhaustion...more
Can public school children with disabilities sue their schools for violations of the federal antidiscrimination statutes and collect compensatory damages before exhausting their administrative remedies under the Individuals...more
The Ohio Court of Appeals has affirmed that a professional liability insurer owed no duty to defend claims against attorneys and their law firm that accused the attorneys of filing “frivolous” lawsuits under the Individuals...more
Now that many of us have been doing some form of remote learning for close to 7 months, we are starting to see hearing officers and state agencies weigh in to resolve complaints related to the appropriateness of remote...more
While only a handful of cases have been reported related to districts’ provision of special education services remotely, we are watching carefully for lessons learned. So far, courts have not required in-person instruction as...more
Part 2: California Laws Impacting Schools and School Districts for 2020 - Last year brought many changes to the legal landscape affecting educators. In this Best Best & Krieger LLP Legal Alert series, we look at some of...more
School districts have an additional defense in their arsenal when faced with an alleged procedural violation of the IDEA: the student’s own poor motivation. The United States Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, whose...more
In a unanimous decision, the United States Supreme Court held that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) requires school districts to provide special education students with “an educational...more
In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision today on the appropriate standard for determining what constitutes a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in Endrew F. v. Douglas Cty. Sch. Dist. RE-1,...more
March 22, 2017 will go down as a good day for parents, like me, who have a child in the public education system who has special needs. In a time when many of the exceptional children's programs in this state and in this...more
In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court today ruled that a disabled child’s parents were not legally required to jump through certain additional hoops and exhaust administrative remedies in a service animal dispute...more
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recently reiterated that the correct standard for determining whether a student has received a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) is whether the student has received “some” rather...more
During a brief altercation in Dashiell Hammett’s classic novel, The Maltese Falcon, the protagonist, Sam Spade, warns one of his antagonists that “when you’re slapped, you’ll take it and like it.” That is much the same...more
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) has issued new guidance in response to concern that some public agencies are filing due process complaints concerning the same...more