This site will periodically highlight major new legal developments, with a focus on student issues under the IDEA and Sec. 504/ADA. To sign up for email notifications of these updates, please scroll all the way down the page (if viewing on a mobile device) or scroll right (if viewing on a desktop computer). Thanks!
September 2018 Legal Update
This monthly legal alert addresses the significant rulings of two recent federal appeals court decisions— Krawietz v. Galveston Independent School District (2018), which reinforced the ad hoc nature of school district’s ongoing obligation of “child find” under the IDEA, and L.H. v. Hamilton County Department of Education (2018), which provided a new twist on both least restrictive environment (by showing the difference between LRE and FAPE) and and reimbursement for private placements (by importing the Endrew F. standard).
August 2018 Legal Update
This month’s legal alert addresses three significant IDEA issues. In Burnette v. San Mateo-Foster City School District, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals answered whether a child find violation entitles the parents to a remedy when the child is determined not to be eligible, and whether child-identified e-mails that are not part of the child’s file are education records under the IDEA. In M.C. v. Knox County Board of Education (2018), the federal district court in Tennessee answered whether planning time is a “related service” or a “support for school personnel” under the IDEA.
July 2018 Legal Update
This monthly legal alert addresses Section 504 and IDEA issues, respectively. First is an update of the national and state-by-state percentages of “504-only” students. Second is the summary of a recent federal appellate court decision concerning child find and eligibility IDEA.
June 2018 Legal Update
This monthly legal alert addresses an IDEA issue and a Section 504 issue. First is the summary of a recent federal appellate court decision concerning the IDEA’s LRE mandate —B.E.L. v. Hawaii (2018). The second is a recently published article reporting the national and state-by-state percentages of “504-only” students.
Special Supplement: Section 504 Eligibility Form
In my interaction with participants at my various presentations around the country, the request for my Sec. 504 eligibility form has become more and more frequent. The form, which may be customized with due acknowledgment, is attached here for your convenience.
May 2018 Legal Update
This month’s legal alert summarizes two recent articles, one that is an updated outcomes analysis of the aftermath of Endrew F. upon its first anniversary (“The Aftermath of Endrew F. One Year Later: An Updated Outcomes Analysis”) and the other that is a case law analysis of the obligations to students with disabilities in private schools (“Legal Obligations to Students with Disabilities in Private Schools”).
April 2018 Legal Update
This monthly legal alert summarizes two recent cases that are officially published federal appeals court decisions. Mr. P. v. West Hartford Board of Education (2018) illustrates various basic issues under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Pollack v. Regional School Unit (2018) identifies a potentially significant additional obligation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
