School districts have no right to sue their states in federal court in disputes over the procedural requirements of U.S. special education law, a federal appeals court ruled last week.
In complaint-resolution proceedings involving the Fairfield-Suisun school district and the Yolo County office of education, the California education department issued written decisions in favor of parents. The local school agencies were dissatisfied and said the state violated procedures in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and its federal regulations.
While the IDEA provides for a losing party in a due-process hearing to take the matter to federal court, provisions of the law on complaint-resolution proceedings provide no such right, said a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, in San Francisco.
