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?
Program Measure
Specific Emphasis
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
ADR: To be or…?
Article analyzes success of mediation, arbitration, summary jury trials in general. Most studies cited did not relate to special ed mediation but might be useful to inform methodology of future studies. Article reports some data on special ed mediations, finding higher correlation with parental...Learn more
Balancing acts: Dispute resolution in the U.S. and English special education law.
Compares special ed. law in US and England. States that the lack of legal representation for low-income parents during dispute resolution affects the fairness of the process, and that parents that don’t have legal advice during mediation are more likely to pursue a due process hearing. Those that...Learn more
Creeping judicialization in special education hearings?: An exploratory study.
This article describes an exploratory study using data from the Iowa Department of Education. The authors examined outcomes of 145 hearing officer decisions and seven judicial variables. Outcomes revealed that parents were successful in 32% of the cases, defendant in 60%, and 8% had mixed outcome...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 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
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
In the matter of Arons: Construction of the IDEA’s lay advocate provision too narrow?
Lay advocates are prohibited from representing parents and children in d.p. hearings under Arons. Part III of this article presents new empirical findings related to the supply of attorneys and lay advocates available to represent parents at any cost and at a reduced cost. Survey was sent to state...Learn more
Is mediation a fair way to resolve special education disputes? First empirical findings.
Examines whether special ed. mediations are successful and looks at parents’ and schools’ perceptions of fairness, satisfaction with results, implementation of agreements, and looks at SES of parents, characteristics of children, wealth of districts, and presence of advocates. Authors collected...Learn more
Lay advocates and parent experts under the IDEA.
The purpose of this article is to expand on the survey data provided in Seven and Zirkel (2002) and to trace the lower court case law between the two decisions related to Arons and the Supreme Court’s ruling in Arlington Central School District Board of Education v. Murphy. The interrelationship...Learn more
Mediation as an alternative method of dispute resolution for the individuals with disabilities education act: A just proposal?
Reports results of Pennsylvania Due Process studies, which examined whether justice is promoted by the IDEA’s due process model. Study found that if parents have the ability to influence the admin. hearings, objective justice was promoted. If the parents were unable to use the process to their...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
Putting square pegs into round holes: Mediation and the rights of children with disabilities under the IDEA.
This Article examines whether or not a mediation process can be created that fits squarely into the goals of the IDEA. Mediation has become the preferred method for settling disputes under the IDEA between schools and families. Article discusses prior research that found high rates of settlement,...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
Special education attorney’s fees: of Buckhannon, the IDEA reauthorization bills, and the IDEA as civil rights statute.
Pt. IV, “Empirical Research on IDEA Disputes.” Focuses on costs and attorney’s fees, but also includes information on prevalence and dynamic of the disputes. First data mentioned is from 1989 report by GAO. Between 1984 and 1988, more disputes appeared to be resolved informally, as numbers of...Learn more
Spotlight on Students With Disabilities
This brief discusses survey results about districts’ perceptions of the ease with which they were able to provide services for students with disabilities and to comply with federal law governing the education of students with disab ilities.Learn more
Trends in Impartial Hearings under the IDEA: A Comparative Update
This article examines trends in Due Process Hearings across fifty-two jurisdictions, including the fifty states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. Questions addressed include, 1) For the period 2012-2017, did the previous six-year period's downward trends of adjudications and filings...Learn more
Trends in Special Education Case Law: Frequency and Outcomes of Published Court Decisions 1998-2012
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) obligates school districts to identify students with disabilities and provide them with a free and appropriate public education (FAPE), which includes specially designed instruction. Identification, FAPE, least restrictive environment (LRE),...Learn more
Unpacking the Logic of Compliance in Special Education: Contextual Influences on Discipline Racial Disparities in Suburban Schools
[Abstract] "The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ([IDEA] 2004; IDEA Amendments 1997) is a civil rights–based law designed to protect the rights of students with disabilities in U.S. schools. However, decades after the initial passage of IDEA, racial inequity in special education...Learn more