California OAH special education order · May 13, 2015
Order Granting Motion to Consolidate
OAH Case No. 2015040885, 2015030258 · ALJ Joy Redmon
OAH consolidated the District's behavior assessment case with Student's case because the parties are the same, the issues overlap, witnesses will likely repeat, and Student did not oppose.
This case went to decision
Student v. San Mateo-Foster City School District (consolidated): San Mateo-Foster City must release behavior assessor's notes and teacher forms; no IEE owed, and all other claims denied. (2015)
Summary
San Mateo-Foster City filed a case asking OAH to rule that its January 2015 behavior assessment of Student was legally appropriate. Student later filed a case seeking, among other things, for Parents to observe Student at school to see whether he shows maladaptive behaviors there. The District moved to consolidate the two cases, and Student did not respond. OAH granted the motion because the cases involve the same parties, overlapping issues about Student's behavior in the 2014-2015 school year, and likely many of the same witnesses. The decision timeline runs from Student's filing date, and the hearing proceeds on the dates set in Student's case.
Why it matters
When a district files its own case to defend an assessment and the family files a related case, OAH will usually combine them if the issues and witnesses overlap. The timeline and hearing dates then follow the later-filed Student case, so families should be ready to address the district's assessment claims at the same hearing.
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
In the Consolidated Matters of:
PARENT ON BEHALF OF STUDENT, OAH Case No. 2015040885 v.
SAN MATEO-FOSTER CITY SCHOOL
DISTRICT,
SAN MATEO-FOSTER CITY SCHOOL OAH Case No. 2015030258
DISTRICT,
v.
ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO
PARENT ON BEHALF OF STUDENT. CONSOLIDATE
On March 4, 2015, San Mateo-Foster City School District filed a due process hearing request in OAH case number 2015030258 (San Mateo-Foster City’s Case), naming Student as respondent.
On April 16, 2015, Student filed a due process hearing request in OAH case number 2015040885 (Student’s Case), naming San Mateo-Foster City as respondent.
On April 30, 2015, San Mateo-Foster City filed a motion to consolidate its case with Student’s case. No response was received from Student.
APPLICABLE LAW
No statute or regulation specifically provides a standard to be applied in deciding a motion to consolidate special education cases; however, OAH will generally consolidate matters that involve: common questions of law or fact; the same parties; and when consolidating the matters furthers 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].)
DISCUSSION
Here, both cases involve the same parties and although the legal issues are not identical, they overlap to a degree that warrants consolidation. San Mateo-Foster City seeks a determination that the Behavior assessment it conducted of Student in January 2015 met all legal requirements. Student seeks, among other things, for Parents to be able to observe Student in the school setting to confirm whether or not he demonstrates maladaptive behaviors in the school setting. It is likely that many of the same witnesses will testify in both hearings. Student’s behavior during the 2014-2015 school year is at issue in both cases.
Student did not oppose the motion for consolidation. In light of the forgoing, consolidation is granted.
ORDER
1. San Mateo-Foster City’s Motion to Consolidate is granted.
2. The applicable decision timeline in the consolidated matters shall be based on the
filing date in OAH Case Number 2015040885 [Student’s Case].
3. All dates previously set in OAH Case Number 2015030258 [San Mateo-Foster
City’s Case] are vacated and the matter will proceed on the dates currently scheduled in OAH Case Number 2015040885 as follows:
Prehearing Conference: June 5, 2015, at 1:00 PM Due Process Hearing: June 11, 2015, from 9:30 AM-5:00 PM; and day-to-day thereafter, Monday through Thursday at the discretion of the Administrative Law Judge.
IT IS SO ORDERED
DATE: May 13, 2015
/ S/
JOY REDMON
Administrative Law Judge Office of Administrative Hearings