California OAH special education order · February 21, 2017
Order Denying Student's Motion for Reconsideration
OAH Case No. 2017020291, 2017010696 · ALJ Sabrina Kong
OAH denied Student's request to reconsider consolidation because District's failure to serve the full complaint was not a new fact affecting the common questions of law or fact between the cases.
Summary
After OAH granted District's motion to consolidate its due process case with Student's earlier case, Student asked OAH to reconsider. Student argued that District had faxed only one page of its complaint, so the complaint was insufficient and consolidation should not have been granted. District did not oppose. OAH denied reconsideration because Student offered no new facts, circumstances, or law, and the service problem did not change the finding that both cases shared common questions about the October 24, 2016 IEP and assessments and that consolidation served judicial economy.
Why it matters
A defect in how a complaint was served is not, by itself, a reason to undo consolidation when the cases share common issues. OAH noted that Student could instead move to reset timelines based on when Student received a complete copy of District's complaint.
Key authority cited
- Gov. Code, § 11521
- Code Civ. Proc., § 1008
- Baldwin v. Home Savings of America (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 1192
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:
LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL OAH Case No. 2017020291
DISTRICT,
v.
PARENT ON BEHALF OF STUDENT,
PARENT ON BEHALF OF STUDENT, OAH Case No. 2017010696 v. ORDER DENYING STUDENT’S
MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION
LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL
DISTRICT.
On January 6, 2017, parent on behalf of Student filed a Request for Due Process Hearing with the Office of Administrative Hearings in case number 2017010696 (Student’s Case), naming Los Angeles Unified School District. On February 7, 2017, District filed a Request for Due Process Hearing with OAH in case number 2017020291 (District’s Case).
Concurrently with the filing of the District’s Case, District filed its Motion to Consolidate Student’s Case with District’s Case. On February 13, 2017, OAH granted District’s Motion to Consolidate.
On February 15, 2017, Student filed a notice of insufficiency as to District’s Case, and a request for reconsideration of District’s Motion to Consolidate.1 District did not oppose.
APPLICABLE LAW
OAH will generally reconsider a ruling upon a showing of new or different facts, circumstances, or law justifying reconsideration, when the party seeks reconsideration within a reasonable period of time. (See, e.g., Gov. Code, § 11521; Code Civ. Proc., § 1008.) The Student’s Notice of Insufficiency will be handled in a separate order.
party seeking reconsideration may also be required to provide an explanation for its failure to previously provide the different facts, circumstances or law. (See Baldwin v. Home Savings of America (1997) 59 Cal.App.4th 1192, 1199-1200.)
DISCUSSION
Student contends that District partially served one page of its complaint by facsimile onto Student. Because District did not properly serve Student the rest of its complaint, District’s complaint was insufficient, should be dismissed, and its Motion to Consolidate should not have been granted.
Student alleges no new facts, circumstances, or law in support of the request reconsideration. District’s failure to serve all pages of the complaint onto Student was not new information which impacted OAH’s finding Student’s Case and District’s Case involve a common question of law or fact regarding the appropriateness of Student’s October 24, 2016 individualized education program, occupational therapy, psycho-educational and speech and language assessments; and that consolidation furthers judicial economy.2 Accordingly, Student’s request for reconsideration is denied.
ORDER
1. Student’s Motion for Reconsideration of District’s Motion for Consolidation is
denied.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATE: February 21, 2017
SABRINA KONG
Administrative Law Judge Office of Administrative Hearings Student may file a Motion to Reset Timelines based on when Student received a complete copy of District’s complaint.