San Diego Special Education law Blog

A question many parents have is “What diagnoses qualify for an IEP?” Those in need of legal guidance and support should consider visiting with the Law Office of Paul A. Hefley, Jr.

If you are concerned whether your child is receiving a free appropriate public education, check out this FAPE checklist. The Law Office of Paul A. Hefley, Jr., can help if you still have concerns.

How often is an IEP reviewed? A San Diego special education attorney explains here.

Parents of children with special needs may wonder, “Will an IEP hurt my child?” Click here to learn more.

The Complete Guide To Understanding FAPE (Free Appropriate Public Education) Click here to learn more.

On October 1, 2021, the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom announced that following full FDA approval of the COVID-19 vaccine for their grade span (7-12 and K-6), California students will be required to be vaccinated in order to continue attending in-person learning.  

Like parents and legal guardians, school districts can file a request for due process hearing with the California Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH). When school districts file a request for due process hearing, they name the student as the Respondent. Of course, because OAH has limited jurisdiction (meaning it can only hear certain types of claims) to enforce the IDEA and corresponding state education law, school districts are only able to bring certain types of claims before OAH. The same holds true for parents. 

An IEP, or Individualized Education Program, is a written statement (typically, a multi-page document) that provides an individualized educational program for a student with specials needs. An IEP must adequately address a student's unique needs and must be reasonably calculated to enable the child to receive educational benefit. An IEP is the delivery tool of special education. It is through the implementation that a school district provides a free appropriate public education (its legal requirement) to the student requiring special education. Special education is instruction specially designed to meet the unique needs of a child with a qualifying disability. 

A statute of limitations is a law passed by a legislative body that limits the length of time following an event that a litigant may initiate legal proceedings. In California, the statute of limitations for bringing a special education dispute before the California Office of Administrative Hearings ("OAH") is two years. Ed. Code, § 56505, subd. (l); 20 US.S.C. § 1415(f)(3)(C). However, there are two key exceptions to this general rule...

In California, special education due process hearings apply the preponderance of evidence standard. What this means in practical terms is that the plaintiff, typically, the child's parents, must convince the Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") that it is more probable than not that the school district failed to provide their child with a free appropriate public education on the specific ground or grounds alleged (e.g., inappropriate placement) in the complaint. 

This case is important for two reasons. First, it highlights the importance of parental cooperation in the IEP process. Second, it clarifies the role comprehensive assessments play in determining IEP eligibility and in developing reasonably calculated IEPs. 

On remand, the ALJ concluded that the student did not meet her burden of proving that she was eligible for special education and related services during the time period in question (Remand Issue 1). Because Student did not prove that Student had an IDEA-qualifying disability in Remand Issue 1, the ALJ concluded student did not require a residential placement under the IDEA to meet her educational needs. This case largely turned on the educational relevance of the independent educational evaluation (IEE) that parent had obtained prior to the original due process hearing.

A parent or guardian can petition the court to change a child's name to conform to the child's gender identity. This process doesn't legally change the child's gender. In order to legally change the child's gender, petitioners must follow a different filing process. The filing process for a name change may require the following steps...

Parents may want to make an audio or video recording of their child for a variety of purposes. One such purpose may be to provide the school, teachers, and/or IEP team with evidence of the child's behavior (such as non-compliance) during distance learning instruction. Such evidence may be incredi...

Yes. While federal special education law does not specifically address this question, in California, parents can audio record IEP meetings so long as they give the school district at least 24 hours notice in writing. California Education Code §56341.1.(g) states that "the parent or guardian or local educational agency shall have the right to record electronically the proceedings of individualized education program team meetings on an audiotape recorder."

On August 24, 2020, Administrative Law Judge Cararea Lucier issued an Order granting student's motion for stay put in Pleasanton Unified School District and Contra Costa County Office of Education, OAH Case Number 2020070970. In her motion for stay put, the student requested a stay put order regarding the essential related services in her IEP, including a full-time Licensed Vocational Nurse ("LVN") as her one-to-one aide and in-person related services in the areas of speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, physical therapy, adapted physical education, and specialized vision services.

When a school district, charter school, or other local education agency (LEA) violates part or all of a special education law or procedure, parents can file a complaint with the California Department of Education (CDE). This blog discusses what a compliance complaint is and how it can benefit parents and their child.

There are many signs that your child's IEP isn't working. This blog discusses 10 of these signs.

Yes. All public schools must provide special education services to eligible students. Charter schools are public schools and must therefore comply with state and federal education law just as public school districts are required to do, namely provide eligible students with a free appropriate publ...

Both Orange and San Diego counties are currently off the watch list and could possibly be eligible to reopen within weeks. But this is a local decision. And no news has come out yet regarding what either county or school districts within the two counties intend to do. In the meantime, there may b...

If parents are able to show that the school district did not follow an IEP, the most common consequence is some amount of public-funded compensatory education. Compensatory education is tutoring hours that is intended to make up for the student's educational loss caused by the school district not following the IEP. However, not every failure to the follow an IEP will result in a legal claim in which compensatory education is warranted.

The IEP is the "centerpiece of the [IDEA's] education delivery system for disabled children." Honig v. Doe (1988) 484 U.S. 305, 311. But what is an IEP and what is its purpose? An IEP is an Individualized Education Program. Only students who qualify for special education can have an IEP...

Who is required to attend an IEP Meeting? Who can attend an IEP Meeting? Is a general education teacher required to attend an IEP Meeting? A special education attorney answers these questions and more.

IEP team meetings are an integral part of special education. Given the important role IEP team meetings play in the special education process, it is critical that the IEP team members work together competently, collaboratively, and calmly. In this blog, San Diego Special Education Attorney gives parents 10 tips to improve IEP meetings.

San Diego Unified School District's school year will begin on August 31, and will be completely online until certain conditions are met. Recently, San Diego Unified asked a team of doctors at University of California, San Diego (UCSD) for recommendations of criteria for safely resuming in-person instruction. San Diego Unified is balancing both the state standards and stricter standards put in place by San Diego County officials.