The Blog: Simply Said
Class Size Disputes Sent to New York’s Highest Court
In Cruz v. Banks, 134 F.4th 687, 125 LRP 12165 (2d Cir. Apr. 15, 2025), certified question accepted, No. 64, 2025 WL 1439661 (N.Y. May 20, 2025), the Second Circuit addressed whether an individualized education program (IEP) offering a 12:1:4 classroom satisfied the...
When Accommodations Mask, Rather Than Remediate, Disability
In William A. v. Clarksville-Montgomery County School System, 127 F.4th 656, 125 LRP 3627 (6th Cir. Feb. 3, 2025), the Sixth Circuit affirmed a determination that a school district denied a student a free appropriate public education (FAPE) under the Individuals with...
When Program Closure Is Not a Change in Placement
In A.M-G. v. Salem Keizer Public Schools, Nos. 6:24-cv-01517-MC, 6:24-cv-01575-MK, 2024 WL 4867060, 124 LRP 40061 (D. Or. Nov. 22, 2024), the district court denied motions for temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions seeking to require a school...
Residential Placement Ordered Where Day Programs Failed
In S.M. v. Chichester School District, No. 2:21-cv-04266, 2024 WL 4438472, 124 LRP 35901, aff’d, No. 24-2727, 2025 WL 649894, 125 LRP 6255 (3d Cir. Feb. 28, 2025) (unpublished), the district court ordered, and the Third Circuit affirmed, injunctive relief requiring a...
Asynchronous Learning Triggered IDEA Notice Obligations
In In re Complaint Decision File 24-043C, No. A24-0229, 2024 WL 4664194, 124 LRP 38498 (Minn. Ct. App. Nov. 4, 2024) (not precedential), the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed a state education department decision requiring corrective action after a school district...
Extended Eligibility Is Extraordinary Relief
In Perez v. Banks, No. 1:23-CV-02966, 2024 WL 4307934, 124 LRP 28851 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 26, 2024), aff’d, 125 LRP 22327 (2d Cir. July 31, 2025), the district court addressed whether extended eligibility under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) was an...
IDEA Exhaustion Required, but Not for Every Claim
In Hawai‘i Disability Center v. Kishimoto, 122 F.4th 353, 124 LRP 40099 (9th Cir. Nov. 26, 2024), the Ninth Circuit addressed whether a federally funded protection and advocacy agency was required to exhaust administrative remedies under the Individuals with...
Unaddressed Behavioral Needs Can Drive FAPE Denials
In Upper Darby School District v. K.W., Nos. 23-2650, 23-265, 2024 WL 3811990, 124 LRP 30821 (3d Cir. Aug. 14, 2024) (unpublished), the Third Circuit affirmed a district court’s determination that a school district denied a student a free appropriate public education...
Direct Payment or Reimbursement Requires a Developed Record
In Moonsammy v. Banks, No. 23 Civ. 10491 (PAE), 2024 WL 4277521, 124 LRP 35077 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 23, 2024), the district court reviewed an administrative decision that found a denial of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) under the Individuals with Disabilities...
Surreptitious Audio Recordings May Be Admissible
In G.L. v. Verona Borough Board of Education, No. 2:23-cv-00938, 2024 WL 3549060, 124 LRP 28443 (D.N.J. July 26, 2024) (unpublished), the district court addressed disputes concerning the appropriate placement of a young student with multiple disabilities and, more...
Placement Objections Cannot Rest on Speculation
In Rivas v. Banks, No. 22-CV-10007 (LJL), 2023 WL 8188069, 123 LRP 34269 (S.D.N.Y. Nov. 27, 2023), reconsideration denied, 2024 WL 292276 (Jan. 25, 2024), aff’d, No. 24-268, 2024 WL 5244849 (2d Cir. Dec. 30, 2024), the district court affirmed administrative decisions...
A Private Placement Can Be Appropriate Without Mirroring the IEP
In M.M. v. New York City Department of Education, No. 21-cv-3693 (BMC), 2024 WL 3904771, 124 LRP 31321 (E.D.N.Y. Aug. 22, 2024), the court addressed a situation in which a school district failed over multiple years to offer an appropriate placement under the...
No First Amendment Right to Video Record IEP Meetings
In Pitta v. Medeiros, 90 F.4th 11, 124 LRP 521 (1st Cir. Jan. 4, 2024), the First Circuit affirmed dismissal of a lawsuit alleging that a school district and special education administrator violated a parent’s First Amendment rights by refusing to allow video...
Speculation Wasn’t Enough to Undermine the Placement
In Zayas v. Banks, No. 22 CIV. 7112 (KPF), 2024 WL 216761, 124 LRP 1849 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 19, 2024), reconsideration denied, 2024 WL 1657880 (Apr. 17, 2024), appeal filed, No. 24-1076 (2d Cir. Apr. 24, 2024), the court rejected a claim for tuition reimbursement based on...
When Compensatory Education Is Deemed Unnecessary
In D.C.G. v. New York City Department of Education, No. 23 Civ. 1337 (JPC) (JW), 2024 WL 1343598, 124 LRP 10410 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 30, 2024), the court affirmed the denial of compensatory education as a remedy for a conceded denial of a free appropriate public education...
Disputed Classification, Confirmed Needs
In Loudoun County School Board v. Bunkua, No. 1:23cv320, 2024 WL 2274492, 124 LRP 16070 (E.D. Va. May 20, 2024), the district court addressed whether a school system provided a free appropriate public education (FAPE) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education...
Courts Must Independently Weigh Equities in Tuition Cases
In Ferreira v. Aviles-Ramos, No. 23-612, 2024 WL 4611106, 120 F.4th 323, 124 LRP 37950 (2d Cir. Oct. 30, 2024), the Second Circuit addressed how district courts must review equitable considerations when deciding claims for private-school tuition reimbursement under...
IDEA May Require Transportation From the Apartment Door
In Pierre-Noel v. Bridges Public Charter School, 113 F.4th 970, 124 LRP 32461 (D.C. Cir. Sept. 3, 2024), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit addressed whether the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires door-to-door...
Speculation Isn’t Enough to Establish a FAPE Violation
In Polanco v. Banks, No. 23-373-cv, 2024 WL 2105530, 124 LRP 16192 (2d Cir. May 10, 2024), petition for cert. filed, No. 24-442 (Oct. 21, 2024), the Second Circuit issued a summary order affirming a district court’s affirmance of a state review officer (SRO) decision...
Compensatory Education Can Survive Aging Out
In Kass v. Western Dubuque Community School District, 101 F.4th 562, 124 LRP 15032 (8th Cir. May 10, 2024), the Eighth Circuit addressed whether a claim for compensatory education under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) becomes moot when a student...