Section 1415 (f)

(f) Impartial due process hearing

    (1) In general

      (A) Hearing

    • Whenever a complaint has been received under subsection (b)(6) or (k), the parents or the local educational agency involved in such complaint shall have an opportunity for an impartial due process hearing, which shall be conducted by the State educational agency or by the local educational agency, as determined by State law or by the State educational agency.
    • (B) Resolution session

        (i) Preliminary meeting

      • Prior to the opportunity for an impartial due process hearing under subparagraph (A), the local educational agency shall convene a meeting with the parents and the relevant member or members of the IEP Team who have specific knowledge of the facts identified in the complaint—
        • (I) within 15 days of receiving notice of the parents’ complaint;
        • (II) which shall include a representative of the agency who has decisionmaking authority on behalf of such agency;
        • (III) which may not include an attorney of the local educational agency unless the parent is accompanied by an attorney; and
        • (IV) where the parents of the child discuss their complaint, and the facts that form the basis of the complaint, and the local educational agency is provided the opportunity to resolve the complaint,

        •  unless the parents and the local educational agency agree in writing to waive such meeting, or agree to use the mediation process described in subsection (e).

        (ii) Hearing

      • If the local educational agency has not resolved the complaint to the satisfaction of the parents within 30 days of the receipt of the complaint, the due process hearing may occur, and all of the applicable timelines for a due process hearing under this subchapter shall commence.
      • (iii) Written settlement agreement

      • In the case that a resolution is reached to resolve the complaint at a meeting described in clause (i), the parties shall execute a legally binding agreement that is—
        • (I) signed by both the parent and a representative of the agency who has the authority to bind such agency; and
        • (II) enforceable in any State court of competent jurisdiction or in a district court of the United States.

        (iv) Review period

      • If the parties execute an agreement pursuant to clause (iii), a party may void such agreement within 3 business days of the agreement’s execution.

    (2) Disclosure of evaluations and recommendations

      (A) In general

    • Not less than 5 business days prior to a hearing conducted pursuant to paragraph (1), each party shall disclose to all other parties all evaluations completed by that date, and recommendations based on the offering party’s evaluations, that the party intends to use at the hearing.
    • (B) Failure to disclose

    • A hearing officer may bar any party that fails to comply with subparagraph (A) from introducing the relevant evaluation or recommendation at the hearing without the consent of the other party.

    (3) Limitations on hearing

      (A) Person conducting hearing

    • A hearing officer conducting a hearing pursuant to paragraph (1)(A) shall, at a minimum—
      • (i) not be—
        • (I) an employee of the State educational agency or the local educational agency involved in the education or care of the child; or
        • (II) a person having a personal or professional interest that conflicts with the person’s objectivity in the hearing;

      • (ii) possess knowledge of, and the ability to understand, the provisions of this chapter, Federal and State regulations pertaining to this chapter, and legal interpretations of this chapter by Federal and State courts;
      • (iii) possess the knowledge and ability to conduct hearings in accordance with appropriate, standard legal practice; and
      • (iv) possess the knowledge and ability to render and write decisions in accordance with appropriate, standard legal practice.

      (B) Subject matter of hearing

    • The party requesting the due process hearing shall not be allowed to raise issues at the due process hearing that were not raised in the notice filed under subsection (b)(7), unless the other party agrees otherwise.
    • (C) Timeline for requesting hearing

    • A parent or agency shall request an impartial due process hearing within 2 years of the date the parent or agency knew or should have known about the alleged action that forms the basis of the complaint, or, if the State has an explicit time limitation for requesting such a hearing under this subchapter, in such time as the State law allows.
    • (D) Exceptions to the timeline

    • The timeline described in subparagraph (C) shall not apply to a parent if the parent was prevented from requesting the hearing due to—
      • (i) specific misrepresentations by the local educational agency that it had resolved the problem forming the basis of the complaint; or
      • (ii) the local educational agency’s withholding of information from the parent that was required under this subchapter to be provided to the parent.

      (E) Decision of hearing officer

        (i) In general

      • Subject to clause (ii), a decision made by a hearing officer shall be made on substantive grounds based on a determination of whether the child received a free appropriate public education.
      • (ii) Procedural issues

      • In matters alleging a procedural violation, a hearing officer may find that a child did not receive a free appropriate public education only if the procedural inadequacies—
        • (I) impeded the child’s right to a free appropriate public education;
        • (II) significantly impeded the parents’ opportunity to participate in the decisionmaking process regarding the provision of a free appropriate public education to the parents’ child; or
        • (III) caused a deprivation of educational benefits.

        (iii) Rule of construction

      • Nothing in this subparagraph shall be construed to preclude a hearing officer from ordering a local educational agency to comply with procedural requirements under this section.

      (F) Rule of construction

    • Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to affect the right of a parent to file a complaint with the State educational agency.
    • Severe Discrepancy, Screening
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      Last modified on November 7, 2019