Supreme Court to Decide Whether Nonlawyer Parents May Sue Under IDEA

The U.S. Supreme Court today agreed to decide whether parents who are not lawyers have a right to represent their child with disabilities, or themselves, in federal court under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

The Bush administration had urged the justices to take up the issue, on which various federal appeals courts had issued conflicting rulings in recent years.

The appeal stems from a lawsuit by Jeff and Sandee Winkelman, two Ohio parents who challenged the appropriateness of a school’s educational plan for their son, Jacob, who...