California OAH special education order · August 14, 2013
Order Denying Motion to Consolidate
OAH Case No. 2013080348 · ALJ Peter Paul Castillo
OAH denied Student's late oral motion to consolidate with the District's case because Student did not explain the delay, the issues differed, and Student's complaint had been found insufficient.
This case went to decision
Salinas Union High School District v. Student: Salinas Union High School District may exit a 14-year-old from special education; he no longer meets eligibility criteria. (2014)
Summary
At the prehearing conference in the District's due process case, which was set for hearing August 20-23, 2013, Student orally moved to consolidate it with Student's newly filed complaint and to continue the hearing. The District objected that the request came too late. The District also filed a notice of insufficiency against Student's complaint, which OAH granted. OAH denied consolidation even though the cases shared some common questions about the independent educational evaluation and Student's academic performance, because Student gave no explanation for filing late, Student's complaint raised different FAPE issues than the District's eligibility case, and the insufficiency ruling left no pending complaint to consolidate.
Why it matters
A consolidation request made days before an already-scheduled hearing is likely to be denied unless the delay is explained, and a complaint found insufficient cannot be consolidated with anything until it is amended.
Key authority cited
- Gov. Code, § 11507.3, subd. (a)
- Code Civ. Proc., § 1048, subd. (a)
Topics
Full text of the order
Published text of the OAH order. Page headers and numbers from the original PDF have been dropped.
BEFORE THE
OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
STATE OF CALIFORNIA
PARENT ON BEHALF OF STUDENT, OAH CASE NO. 2013080348
v. ORDER DENYING MOTION TO
CONSOLIDATE
SALINAS UNION HIGH SCHOOL
DISTRICT,
On July 15, 2013, Salinas Union High School District (District) filed a Request for Due Process Hearing in Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) case number 2013070582 (First Case), naming Student. The First Case is set for hearing on August 20 – 23, 2013.
On August 12, 2013, Student filed a Request for Due Process Hearing in OAH case number 2013080348 (Second Case), naming the District. The Second Case was set for hearing on October 8, 2013.
At the August 12, 2013 prehearing conference for the First Case, Student made an oral Motion to Consolidate the First Case with the Second Case and to continue the due process hearing date set in Case Number 2013080348 (Second Case).
On August 13, 2013, the District filed an objection to consolidation on the ground that Student’s complaint and request to consolidate the cases because of the lateness of the request. The same day, the District also filed a Notice of Insufficiency (NOI), which OAH granted on August 14, 2013, which vacated the dates for hearing and gave Student 14 days to file an amended complaint.
Consolidation Although no statute or regulation specifically provides a standard to be applied in deciding a motion to consolidate special education cases, OAH will generally consolidate matters that involve: a common question of law and/or fact; the same parties; and when consolidation of the matters furthers the interests of judicial economy by saving time or preventing inconsistent rulings. (See Gov. Code, § 11507.3, subd. (a) [administrative proceedings may be consolidated if they involve a common question of law or fact]; Code of Civ. Proc., § 1048, subd. (a) [same applies to civil cases].)
While, the First Case and Second Case do contain some common questions of law or fact regarding the independent educational evaluation the District provided Student and Student’s academic performance during the past two years, Student did not explain the lateness of the filing his due process complaint. Additionally, Student’s complaint involves different factual issues regarding whether the District’s educational program provided Student with a free appropriate public education and no whether presently Student is eligible for special education services. Finally, the granting of the District’s NOI also means that there is no present case to consolidate with the District’s case. Accordingly, Student’s motion to consolidate is denied.
ORDER
1. Student’s Motion to Consolidate is denied.
2. All dates for hearing in OAH case number 2013070582 shall remain as scheduled.
Dated: August 14, 2013 /s/
PETER PAUL CASTILLO
Administrative Law Judge Office of Administrative Hearings