This searchable database contains bibliographic information for literature (research-based and policy/practice) relating to dispute resolution in special education.
CADRE is interested in identifying additional articles and publications to include in this database. If you are aware of other such resources, please send an email to cadre@directionservice.org with as much information as possible about the resource (e.g., title, author, source, date), and include a copy of the publication or a URL link, if available. Interested in emerging research and knowledge gaps in IDEA dispute resolution?
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Adjudication under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act: Explicitly Plentiful Rights but Inequitably Paltry Remedies
This article proposes an invigoration in the exercise of the broad equitable authority of hearing officers under the Individuals with Disabilities Act. Providing a higher priority on, and an affirmative presumption for, remedying violations of the Act is in the interest of all parties, extending...Learn more
An Examination of Group Facilitator Challenges and Problem-Solving Techniques During IEP Team Meetings
[abstract] Special education professionals serve as facilitators of Individualized Education Plan (IEP) team meetings. As special educators serve on many IEP teams during the course of an academic year, and as the member composition for each team varies, facilitators are confronted with a unique...Learn more
An Investigation of Facilitated Individualized Education Program Meeting Practice: Promising Procedures That Foster Family–Professional Collaboration
There is limited research about effective Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting practices that promote family–professional collaboration. One emerging practice, the Facilitated IEP (FIEP) meeting, has recently gained national attention for its team-based approach. In this study, the...Learn more
Beyond the Dotted Line: Empowering Parents From Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Families to Participate
Parent participation in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) process is a critical factor in improving the effectiveness of children’s special education programs and services. However, many families, particularly those from culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) backgrounds, are...Learn more
COVID-19 and Students with Disabilities: A Snapshot of Legal Activity to Date
The COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in the closure of public schools in March 2020 and the return from remote to inperson instruction for varying periods depending on the state and locality, would appear to be a fertile field for legal activity under the Individuals with Disabilities Education...Learn more
District-Initiated Due Process Hearing Decisions Under the IDEA: Frequency and Outcomes
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the primary federa legislation for special education in public schools. Its core obligation for school districts is the provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to eligible students. The primary adjudicative mechanism, which...Learn more
Due Process Hearing and Written State Complaint Activity for COVID-19 Issues: A Six-Month Snapshot
In addition to the alternative forms of dispute resolution under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the two decisional avenues are adjudicative and investigative. The adjudicative avenue starts with a due process hearing (DPH) and culminates in court proceedings. The...Learn more
Due Process Hearings Under The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act: Justice Delayed...
Abstract: The authors report the average duration of fully adjudicated hearings was much longer than the regulatory timeline, and only 15% of the standard decisions for the six-year period were completed within the 75-day timeline. They note the 75-day benchmark serves as a guideline goal, with the...Learn more
Engaging Students and Parents in Transition-Focused Individualized Education Programs
*/ [Abstract] The reauthorizations of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act emphasize that students and parents are to be considered equal partners in the individualized education program (IEP) process. This article addresses how to move from compliance with the law to facilitating...Learn more
Exhaustion of Section 504 and ADA Claims Under the IDEA: Resolving The Confusion
Abstract: The IDEA’s exhaustion provision is subject to confusion among courts as well as the parties. Its proper judicial compromise that this provision represents in reversing the Smith v. Robinson exclusivity ruling. The result of the confusion is making the adjudicative process under federal...Learn more
Failure to Implement the IEP: The Third Dimension of FAPE Under the IDEA
After distinguishing the development of “failure to implement” (FTI) the individualized education program (IEP) as a third dimension beyond the procedural and substantive dimensions of FAPE (free appropriate public education) first established in Board of Education v. Rowley , this article provides...Learn more
Frequency Trends in the State Complaint Procedures Under the IDEA
Introduction: One of the most active areas of litigation in K-12 education is in special education, an area of litigation that has risen steadily since the 1980s. While the primary focus for analyzing litigation trends has been court cases, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)...Learn more
Impartial Hearings Under the IDEA: Updated Legal Issues and Answers
This updated question-and-answer document is specific to impartial hearing officers (IHOs) and the hearings that they conduct under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The coverage does not extend to the alternate third-party dispute decisional mechanism under the IDEA, the...Learn more
Improving DR Practices for Diverse Families
To provide relief for families who disagree with their child’s educational program, the IDEA provides three types of dispute resolution: mediation, written state complaints, and due process hearings. While these options support constructive conflict engagement, many families find these processes...Learn more
Is Appealing A Hearing Officer's Decision Likely To Result In a Major Outcome Change In The Final Court Decision
[Abstract] Adjudications under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) continue to be an active area of education litigation at both the hearing officer (HO) and court levels. One of the many questions for IDEA litigants, in light of the considerable costs and time of this “ponderous...Learn more
Measuring Accessibility of Written Communication for Parents of Students With Disabilities: Reviewing 30 Years of Readability Research
Effective communication is essential for successful school–family partnerships. Written communication is most common due to the efficiency of written documents, but challenges include assuring the information disseminated to parents is accessible based on readability, clarity, complexity, and...Learn more
OSEP Policy Guidance for IDEA Impartial Hearing Officers
This annotated overview of the policy letters of the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) available on their website covers the period 2001 to the present. Among these IDEA policy interpretations, the selection is largely limited to those within the basic building blocks of the IDEA, free...Learn more
Outcome Trends in State Complaint Procedures Decisions Under the IDEA
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act1 (IDEA) provides two alternative administrative, decisional dispute resolution mechanisms: due process complaints/hearing (DPH) and the state complaint system. The state complaint process has garnered far less attention than that devoted to DPH. To...Learn more
Policy-to-Practice—A Portraiture Study of Special Education Implementations to Improve Student Outcomes through Mediation
Abstract: Improving student outcomes for students with disabilities is the primary goal of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The IDEA charges school districts to collaborate closely with parents to design and execute an individualized education program (IEP) that allows...Learn more
Safeguarding procedures under the IDEA: Restoring the balance in the adjudication of FAPE
In the landmark case Board of Education v. Rowley in 1982, the Supreme Court concluded that FAPE has two prongs—procedural compliance and a less specific substantive standard. In the succeeding decades, the courts have gradually eroded the procedural dimension to the point of near distinction by...Learn more
Schaffer v. Weast’s Effects on California Special Education Hearing Decisions
This research examined the associations between Schaffer v. Weast (2005) and special education due process hearing decisions in California. Using a database we coded from the state’s due process hearings for cases that reached a decision (years 1995–2019), this study analyzed (1) how legal...Learn more