The IDEA’s framework is complex. In this session, Mr. Merced will provide a summary overview of the IDEA’s various component parts to enable new IDEA ALJs/IHOs to see the forest for the trees and how due process fits into the larger picture.

This nuts and bolts session introduces new IDEA ALJs/IHOs to the major IDEA federal statutory and regulatory requirements, including the various timelines and the hearing rights of the parties.

This session will cover the major case law from the U.S. Supreme Court and other federal courts that should be applied by ALJs/IHOs when determining the legal issues in a due process hearing, including those involving: child find, FAPE, LRE/ placement, related services, reimbursement, compensatory services, stay put, statute of limitations, burden of proof, and other IDEA issues.

Under the IDEA, each State Education Agency (SEA) must effectively and efficiently administer a due process hearing system by having written procedures that align with IDEA; overseeing an infrastructure to support the case management, data collection, federal reporting requirements, the hearing of due process complaints, and the enforcement of decisions; and maintaining a list of trained and impartial hearing officers that align practices and decisions with federal and State law. The SEA’s collaboration with the independent hearing officers/administrative law judges to allow for proper oversight is critical to ensure an IDEA compliant system. This session will examine the due process complaint and hearing system from the SEA perspective, and identify critical points of coordination necessary for IDEA compliant systems.

Many administrative law judges hear IDEA cases and other kinds of contested administrative law cases. This will be a discussion on some of the unique challenges IDEA hearings present to judges, and different ways to handle them. Participants will be invited to share their experiences and ideas with the group. Judge Mortensen will facilitate the discussion, based on his experiences, with an outline of some of the ways IDEA prehearing and hearing matters may be handled differently from other kinds of hearings in order to ensure an efficient and fair process, and to enable the judge to craft an understandable decision.

Frances Raskin is a former journalist, civil litigator, and IDEA impartial hearing officer in Washington, D.C. This session will focus on techniques for writing persuasive decisions in less time without shortchanging your legal analysis. Ms. Raskin will review key steps in the pre-decisional process and discuss methods to ensure your decisions are accessible to your audience. She then will dig into the essential mechanics of decision writing and strategies for withstanding appellate review. The session will conclude with tips for drafting effective orders.

You have questions not covered by the conference topics? A distinguished panel of IDEA national consultants, ALJs, and SEA folks will have answers. Mr. Merced will facilitate this open mic session where audience members can ask questions of the panel regarding anything due process.

This session will cover leading cases from the last twelve months, concentrating on published decisions from the federal courts of appeals, but including some noteworthy lower court and unpublished appellate decisions. The discussion will include the likely impact of the outcome of the Supreme Court case Perez v. Sturgis School District relating to exhaustion of IDEA remedies.