California OAH special education order · February 23, 2015
Order Granting Motion to Consolidate and Granting Motion to Continue
OAH Case No. 2014121009, 2015010431 · ALJ Deidre L. Johnson
OAH consolidated Folsom Cordova's assessment case with Student's FAPE case and continued Student's case, but rejected the parties' request for split hearing days and ordered consecutive hearing days.
This case went to decision
Student v. Folsom Cordova Unified School District (consolidated): Folsom Cordova Unified must provide 54 tutoring hours for a missing attention goal and English instruction gaps; may assess without consent. (2015)
Summary
Folsom Cordova and Student jointly asked OAH to consolidate the District's case about its 2014 request to assess Student with Student's complaint alleging denials of FAPE since the 2012-2013 school year. They also asked to continue Student's case to the District case's April dates and add two more days, April 21 and 22. OAH granted consolidation because both cases share questions about the assessments and the adequacy of prior assessments, and consolidation serves judicial economy. OAH found good cause for the continuance but denied the request for only two hearing days per week as unjustified, and set consecutive hearing days starting April 13, 2015.
Why it matters
Even when both sides agree, OAH may refuse a hearing schedule that spreads the case over non-consecutive days, so parties should be ready to explain why they need a split schedule. In consolidated cases, the 45-day decision timeline runs from the first-filed complaint.
Key authority cited
- Gov. Code, § 11507.3, subd. (a)
- Code Civ. Proc., § 1048, subd. (a)
- Ed. Code, § 56502, subd. (f)
- Ed. Code, § 56505, subd. (f)(1)(C)(3)
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
In the Consolidated Matters of:
FOLSOM CORDOVA UNIFIED SCHOOL OAH Case No. 2014121009
DISTRICT,
v.
PARENTS ON BEHALF OF STUDENT.
PARENTS ON BEHALF OF STUDENT, OAH Case No. 2015010431 v.
ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO
FOLSOM CORDOVA UNIFIED SCHOOL CONSOLIDATE AND GRANTING
DISTRICT, MOTION TO CONTINUE
On December 24, 2014, the Folsom Cordova Unified School District filed a Request for Due Process Hearing in Office of Administrative Hearings case number 2014121009 (First Case), naming Parents and Student. On January 5, 2015, OAH granted Student’s motion for a continuance of the First Case. It is now set for a prehearing conference on April 3, 2015, and a due process hearing on April 14 and 15, 2015 (and thereafter day to day as needed and at the discretion of the Administrative Law Judge).
On January 9, 2015, Student filed a Request for Due Process Hearing in OAH case number 2015010431 (Second Case), naming Folsom Cordova. The Second Case is set for a prehearing conference on February 27, 2015, and a due process hearing beginning on March 5, 2015.
On January 20, 2015, the parties filed a joint stipulation to consolidate the cases, continue Student’s case to the dates set in the First Case for Folsom Cordova, and add two more hearing dates on April 21 and 22, 2015. The joint stipulation is deemed to be a motion.
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].)
Here, the First Case and Second Case involve common questions of law or fact as to Folsom Cordova’s 2014 request to assess Student in specified areas related to his suspected disabilities, and the adequacy of both Folsom Cordova’s and Student’s private prior assessments. In addition, Student’s complaint claims that, beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, Folsom Cordova procedurally and substantively denied Student a free appropriate public education in specified ways, including failing to implement components of his individualized education programs; failing to provide adequate annual goals, including transition goals; predetermining his placement; and failing to timely respond to Student’s request for an independent educational evaluation. The interests of judicial economy and efficiency support consolidation in these circumstances. Accordingly, the motion for consolidation of the First Case and the Second Case is granted.
Continuance A due process hearing must be held, and a decision rendered, within 45 days of receipt of the complaint, unless a continuance is granted for good cause. (Ed. Code, §§ 56502, subd. (f) & 56505, subd. (f)(1)(C)(3).)
Since the parties’ motion for consolidation is granted, their motion to continue the hearing dates in the Second Case is based on good cause. The consolidated matter should be heard on consecutive hearing dates. As a result, the request of the parties to schedule the hearing for only two days of hearing per week, on April 14, 15, 21, and 22, 2015, is without justification and is denied. OAH shall schedule this hearing to be conducted from day to day, Monday through Thursday, beginning on Monday, April 13, 2015, as ordered below.
ORDER
1. The joint motion to consolidate is granted.
2. The joint motion to continue Student’s case is granted and all dates previously set
in OAH Case Number 2015010431 (Second Case) are vacated.
3. This consolidated matter will proceed to hearing as follows: a mandatory
telephonic prehearing conference on April 3, 2015, at 10:00 a.m.; and a due process hearing on Monday, April 13, 2015, at 1:30 p.m.; and on April 14, 15, and 16, 2015, at 9:00 a.m. The hearing may continue thereafter, day to day, as needed and at the discretion of the ALJ. 1
4. The 45-day timeline for issuance of the decision in the consolidated cases shall be
based on the date of the filing of the complaint in Folsom Cordova’s case, OAH Case Number 2014121009 (First Case).
DATE: February 23, 2015
/S/
DEIDRE L. JOHNSON
Administrative Law Judge Office of Administrative Hearings The parties shall meet and confer regarding the need to add any further days to complete their cases and be prepared to provide such information to the ALJ at the prehearing conference.