California OAH special education order · October 31, 2014

Order Regarding Replacement Copy of District's Exhibit 23

OAH Case No. 2014100025 · ALJ Kara Hatfield

OAH ordered District to file a replacement copy of admitted Exhibit 23 after the ALJ mistakenly returned it, and gave Parent a deadline to object if the copy does not match hers.

Ruling Evidence and witnesses

This case went to decision

Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District v. Student: Santa Monica-Malibu Unified may place a tenth grader at Linden Center nonpublic school without parental consent. (2014)

Summary

After the due process hearing, the ALJ mistakenly returned District's admitted Exhibit 23, a September 2, 2014 prior written notice, to District along with unadmitted exhibits. On her own motion, the ALJ ordered District to file and serve a true copy of the exhibit by November 6, 2014, along with its written closing argument. Parent may object by November 14, 2014, but only on the ground that the replacement does not match the copy she received at hearing, and she must attach her copy for comparison.

Why it matters

When an admitted exhibit is lost or misplaced, OAH can rebuild the record with a replacement copy. Parents should keep the hearing copies of exhibits they receive so they can check that any replacement matches.

Topics

exhibits evidentiary record prior written notice closing briefs self-represented parent

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

In the Matter of:

SANTA MONICA-MALIBU UNIFIED OAH CASE NO. 2014100025

SCHOOL DISTRICT,

ORDER REGARDING

v. REPLACEMENT COPY OF

DISTRICT’S EXHIBIT 23

PARENT ON BEHALF OF STUDENT.

On October 30, 2014, District’s Exhibit 23, a prior written notice dated September 2, 2014, was admitted into evidence. At the conclusion of the due process hearing later that day, the Administrative Law Judge returned to District’s attorney District’s pre-marked exhibits that had not been admitted into evidence. The ALJ mistakenly returned District’s Exhibit 23 to District.

By 5:00 p.m. on November 6, 2014, concurrent with submission of its written closing argument, District shall file with OAH and serve upon Mother a true and correct copy of what had been marked and received as District’s Exhibit 23. Student’s Mother should compare it to the copy of District’s Exhibit 23 she was provided at hearing. Student’s Mother has until 5:00 p.m. on November 14, 2014, to file an objection to District’s Exhibit 23 based solely on it not matching the copy she was provided at hearing. If Mother files an objection on the ground the exhibit does not match what she was provided at hearing, Mother shall include the copy of District’s Exhibit 23 that she was provided for comparison.