California OAH special education order · June 27, 2019
Order Denying Motion To Dismiss
OAH Case No. 2019060591 · ALJ Rommel P. Cruz
OAH denied Empire Springs Charter's motion to dismiss because it asked for a merits ruling on a factual dispute: whether refusing to enroll Student during a special education assessment was disciplinary.
This case went to decision
Student v. Empire Springs Charter School: Empire Springs Charter School did not expel student by disenrolling him for skipping mandatory annual testing; all relief denied. (2019)
Summary
Empire Springs Charter School moved to dismiss Student's due process complaint, and Student opposed. The charter school had decided not to enroll Student for the 2019-2020 school year while it was still assessing Student's eligibility for special education. OAH found the motion went beyond claims that are plainly outside its jurisdiction and instead asked for a ruling on the merits, which special education law does not allow through summary judgment. Whether the nonenrollment decision was disciplinary or non-disciplinary is a factual dispute that requires an evidentiary hearing, so the motion was denied and all dates were confirmed.
Why it matters
OAH will not use a motion to dismiss to decide disputed facts, such as a school's real reason for excluding a child it was assessing for eligibility. Families can get a full hearing on whether the discipline protections for children not yet found eligible apply.
Key authority cited
- 20 U.S.C. § 1415(k)(5)(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 Matter of:
PARENT ON BEHALF OF STUDENT, OAH Case No. 2019060591 v. ORDER DENYING MOTION TO
DISMISS
EMPIRE SPRINGS CHARTER SCHOOL.
On June 24, 2019, Empire Springs Charter School filed a Motion to Dismiss Student’s Due Process Hearing Request with the Office of Administrative Hearings. On June 27, 2019, Student filed an opposition.
APPLICABLE LAW AND DISCUSSION
Although OAH will grant motions to dismiss allegations that are facially outside of OAH jurisdiction (e.g., civil rights claims, section 504 claims, enforcement of settlement agreements, incorrect parties, etc. . . . .), special education law does not provide for a summary judgment procedure.
Here, the motion to dismiss is not limited to matters that are facially outside of OAH jurisdiction, but instead seeks a ruling on the merits. Specifically, a factual dispute exists as to whether Empire Springs Charter’s decision to not enroll Student for the 2019-2020 school year, in light of Empire Springs Charter’s ongoing assessment of Student to determine his eligibility for special education and related services, was based on disciplinary or non- disciplinary reasons. (20 U.S.C. § 1415(k)(5)(A).) A determination of this factual dispute requires an evidentiary hearing. Accordingly, Empire Springs Charter’s motion to dismiss is denied. All dates currently set in this matter are confirmed.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATE: June 27, 2019
ROMMEL P. CRUZ
Administrative Law Judge Office of Administrative Hearings