United States Ninth Circuit

In these consolidated actions, plaintiffs are local educational agencies in California, one a school district, the other a county office of education. In separate, unrelated actions, plaintiffs sued the California Department of Education in federal court, alleging that, in resolving disputes between parent and school districts, the Department routinely violated certain procedural requirements imposed by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and its implementing regulations. Plaintiffs seek a declaration that the challenged practices are unlawful and an injunction forbidding their use in resolving future disputes. The district court's dismissal of the actions on grounds that Congress did not grant school districts the right to sue state agencies for violating procedural requirements imposed by the IDEA is affirmed, where school districts lack a statutory right of action and lack an implied right of action to challenge a state agency's non-compliance with the IDEA's procedural protections in the context of complaint resolution proceedings.

Appellate Information

• Decided 03/16/2015
• Published 03/16/2015

Judges

• Watford

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel