Whenever a due process hearing is held pursuant to the provisions of the “Individuals with Disabilities Education Act,” 20 U.S.C. s.1400 et seq., chapter 46 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes, or regulations promulgated thereto, regarding the identification, evaluation, reevaluation, classification, educational placement, the provision of a free, appropriate public education, or disciplinary action, of a child with a disability, the school district shall have the burden of proof and the burden of production.

This law returns the burden of proof to the school district, as was in the case in New Jersey prior to the holding in Shaffer.

Here is a link to the new law.

Posted by Victor J. Medina – Medina, Martinez & Castroll, LLC

I’ll be speaking with Tony Sciarrillo and we’ll be talking about some of the new laws and cases affecting school districts in New Jersey.

Here’s a link to the program announcement – NJASBO Legal Update Program

Incidentally, our firm will be hosting a booth at the New Jersey School Boards Association Annual Conference in Atlantic City in October. We’ll be in Booth 1123, across from the Apple booth. (Did you know that our firm runs exclusively on Macs?)

If you attended any of the NJASBO A5 training seminars or Legal Update Programs at which I spoke, please stop by and introduce yourself. We’ll be talking about our Policy Customization Services and In-Service Training Programs – and of course, you’ll probably get some trinket for free!

See you there -

Posted by Victor J. Medina of Medina, Martinez & Castroll, LLC

What will be the impact of this ruling?  Well, I believe that this means that we’ll see a higher level of quality cases move to due process hearings.  Now that the cost of hiring an expert will fall on parents, regardless of whether they are the prevailing party, parents will not needlessly engage the services of an outside consultant, except in cases where there is an absolute need for an additional opinion.

Too often, parents adopts a "let’s see what sticks to the wall" approach to litigating their child’s special education case, figuring that with enough ammunition, they’ll win the case and get those costs repaid.  The goal should, instead, to marshal the evidence necessary to achieve a result, without any expectation that those costs will be recouped and an understanding that such expenses are a necessary cost of seeing the case through to the end.

That said, it’s also right and proper that I give this a new launch because of the launch of my new law firm, Medina, Martinez & Castroll.  That could be the most inartful sentence I’ve written in months but I’m leaving it there because it’s unlikely that anyone but me will read this entire post. 

By way of description, MMC is a law firm based in Pennington, New Jersey, which serves as legal counsel to about a half dozen school districts.  In many cases, we serve as outside general counsel for these school districts, providing legal advice in the area of financial matters, commercial transactions, student discipline, special education, labor relations and policy (to name just a few).  If you’re interested in learning more about my law firm, I encourage you to visit our website and look around. 

As is my policy with our other blog, comments are welcome and appreciated.  It’s my intention to provide the basis for discussion and discourse.  I hope to hear from you soon.

Now, onto the substantive posts…..

- Victor

This program can really help parents learn how to secure their children’s education rights and I recommend attending this program without reservation if you’re in the area.  If you don’t happen to live around Lancaster, PA, the Wrights hold these types of Boot Camps and other similar programs across the country, so check the website to see if they’re coming your way.

I’m planning to attend this conference – let me know if you’ll be there too.

Here’s a link to the registration form.