Evidence and witnesses
327 California OAH special education orders on evidence and witnesses, newest first, each with a plain-English summary. Search and filter these orders.
2026
- Order Denying Motion to Reopen Evidentiary RecordOAH denied Student's post-hearing motion to reopen the record to admit a different version of an IEP. Student had that version since 2023 and never offered it during the hearing.
- Order Denying Student's Request to Strike Testimony; Order Granting Request for Reconsideration; and Order Denying Student's Request to Exclude ExhibitOAH refused to strike a district expert's testimony given while Parent was off the virtual hearing, because her absence was foreseeable and avoidable, but gave no weight to an unauthenticated work sample admitted then.
- Order Denying Student's Motion in LimineOAH denied Student's motion to bar Irvine staff not designated as experts from giving opinion testimony, finding it premature and that staff may give lay opinions about their work with Student.
- Order Regarding Evidence on Remaining Issues to Be Proven at HearingOAH limited the rest of the hearing to evidence on claims from December 26, 2023 onward, after ruling that Student failed to prove an exception to the two-year statute of limitations.
- Order Granting Motion to Receive EvidenceOAH admitted Student's Exhibit S4 into evidence after the hearing because Parent authenticated it under oath at hearing and Vista Oaks had withdrawn its objection; it was left out only by oversight.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by VideoconferenceOAH denied District's oral request to limit the hearing on statute-of-limitations grounds and ordered District to examine shared witnesses first, citing a self-represented, Spanish-speaking Parent and hearing efficiency.
- Student's Request to Admit Audio Video Recordings Is Denied Without PrejudiceOAH denied without prejudice Student's request to admit audio video recordings into evidence because it was premature; the hearing judge will decide whether exhibits are admissible at the hearing.
- Order Requiring Correction of Exhibits and Service of Medical Note on Opposing CounselOAH ordered Parent to correctly upload Student's exhibits and serve his medical note on Irvine's counsel, warning that failure to appear or fix exhibits would trigger an order to show cause on dismissal.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference and Denying Student's Motion to Fund Witness FeesOAH denied Student's motion to make District pay in advance for Student's assessor witnesses to testify, finding no authority for it and noting the IDEA does not allow recovery of expert fees.
- Order Granting in Part and Denying in Part Request for Official NoticeOAH took official notice of a U.S. Department of Education inclusive-practices publication (existence only) and an OSEP Dear Colleague Letter, but refused notice of two CDE webpages as of limited relevance.
- Order Denying Protective Order Prohibiting Cross-Examination of StudentOAH denied Student's request to bar Castro Valley from cross-examining Student after a math-skill demonstration, because the right to cross-examine witnesses is a fundamental part of due process.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference, Denying Motion to Dismiss, and Denying Motion in Limine Without PrejudiceOAH denied Student's motion in limine without prejudice because it sought to exclude unidentified records. It also denied Simi Valley's partial motion to dismiss as an improper merits challenge and set nine issues for a videoconference hearing.
- Order Denying Student's First Motion to Correct the RecordOAH denied Student's motion to correct the record because it sought nothing to correct and instead tried to relitigate final rulings. A Parent declaration cannot replace testimony Parent skipped.
- Order Setting Schedule for Written Closing Argument for Expedited Due Process HearingOAH closed Student's case after Parent failed to appear on the ninth day of the expedited hearing, excluded an exhibit lacking foundation, closed the record, and allowed optional written closing briefs.
2025
- Order Granting in Part, and Denying in Part, Request for Official NoticeOAH took official notice only that California Department of Education CAASPP reports exist, refusing to accept the truth of their English learner statistics because San Mateo did not show the figures were readily and accurately verifiable.
- Order Denying Natomas Unified School District's Motion for Videoconference TestimonyOAH denied Natomas's request to let a former employee testify by videoconference because the hearing is in person as an ADA reasonable accommodation for Parent, which outweighs the witness's travel burden.
- Order Accepting Hearing ExhibitOAH admitted Los Angeles Unified's 2025-2026 school calendar as Student's Exhibit 22 after hearing, because the record was still open, the motion was unopposed, and good cause existed.
- Order Denying Request for Official NoticeOAH denied Palm Springs' request for official notice of filings in two prior cases because the District never identified the specific documents and did not show they were relevant.
- Order Granting Request for Continuance, Setting Prehearing Conference and Due Process Hearing, Denying Motion to Bifurcate as Moot, and Denying Request for Official Notice Without PrejudiceOAH denied Palm Springs's request for official notice of two prior OAH cases as not yet ripe, and granted a three-week continuance over Student's objection because the district's attorney had a pre-planned vacation.
- Order Denying Motions to Preserve EvidenceOAH denied Student's motions for a litigation hold on a classroom iPad and class messaging groups because Student showed no authority under the IDEA or California law letting OAH order evidence preserved.
- Order Granting Request to Upload IEP Team Meeting Audio Recordings to Case CenterOAH let Cupertino upload IEP team meeting audio recordings to Case Center, and let Student do the same, but required any upload to be a complete recording of the entire meeting.
- Order Denying Request to Take Official NoticeOAH denied Student's post-hearing request to officially notice that an assistant principal lacked an administrative credential, finding the state credential listing irrelevant, reasonably disputable, and insufficient to prove what Student claimed.
- Order to Comply With Instructions in Original Order to Upload Complete Psychoeducational Report and to Restore the Original Version of District's Exhibit 22OAH ordered Corona-Norco to restore an admitted exhibit it deleted without permission and to upload the complete psychoeducational report as a new exhibit, warning that sanctions, including exclusion of the exhibit, could follow.
- Order Requiring Complete Psychoeducational Report Uploaded to Case CenterOAH ordered Corona-Norco to upload a complete copy of its psychoeducational report exhibit after the hearing because the admitted version was missing pages 10 and 12. Parents may object if it differs from their copy.
- Order Granting Request for Official Notice of the Office of Administrative Hearings' January 15, 2025, DecisionOAH granted Weaver's unopposed request to take official notice of its January 15, 2025 decision between the same parties, because a prior OAH decision is an indisputable fact verifiable from OAH's own records.
- Order Following Expedited Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference; Order Granting Motion for Official Notice of Expedited and Non-Expedited Decisions in OAH Case Number 2024100187OAH took official notice of two prior OAH decisions involving Student, without objection, but deferred ruling on the prior hearing recordings because Student did not yet have copies.
- Order for In Camera Inspection of Exhibit D58ALJ ordered a private in camera review of the original, unredacted incident video (Exhibit D58) because the parties disputed whether Atascadero's redactions changed the video's meaning.
- Order Denying Request for Official NoticeOAH denied Student's post-hearing request for official notice of a Long Beach website chart on placement restrictiveness, because it was not timely disclosed, is reasonably disputable, and is not relevant to Student's specific circumstances.
- Order Requiring Identification of Electronic Exhibits for HearingOAH ordered Student to rename uploaded hearing exhibits before the hearing began, because the exhibits in Case Center did not follow the naming rules in OAH's electronic exhibit order.
2024
- Order to Recall Witness Karen Natoci to Complete Audio RecordOAH ordered witness Karen Natoci recalled by December 17, 2024, because part of her November 27 testimony was taken without the audio recording on, leaving a gap in the hearing record.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference Denying Without Prejudice Motion to Treat Respondent Witnesses as Hostile and Continuing Due Process Hearing and Setting Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied without prejudice Student's motion to question Davis employees as hostile witnesses because it was premature, and continued the hearing because OAH could not provide a multi-day Spanish interpreter for Parent.
- Order Denying Motion to Limit Argument and Evidence and Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by VideoconferenceOAH denied, without prejudice, Palo Alto's motion to limit Student's evidence about a May 2022 assessment because the district relied on a settlement agreement it did not attach.
- Order Dismissing Student's Motion to Exclude Evidence and Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by VideoconferenceOAH dismissed Student's late motion to exclude evidence for lack of good cause, and also dismissed Student's McKinney-Vento and Section 504/ADA claims as outside OAH's jurisdiction.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference on Remand, Vacating Hearing Dates, Continuing Matter for Closing Briefs, and Granting in Part District's Motion to Supplement the Administrative RecordOAH let Kentfield add Student's later state test scores and a 2022 psychoeducational assessment to the remand record, but excluded later grades, an IEP, and teacher input as subjective and too remote from January 2020.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference, Denying Motion to Dismiss, Partially Granting Motion to Bifurcate, and Denying Motions in LimineOAH denied San Francisco Unified's statute-of-limitations motion to dismiss and its motions in limine. Student alleged misrepresentation and withholding of information, so he is entitled to an evidentiary hearing on the exceptions.
- Order Granting Student's Request for Continuance of Due Process Hearing and Setting Schedule for Uploading of Exhibits and Disclosure of Witness ListsOAH continued the hearing to June 2024 because Student's attorney was ill. Over Capistrano's objection, it also let Student upload late exhibits and name more witnesses, since the delay caused Capistrano no prejudice.
- Order Denying Motion in Limine Without PrejudiceOAH denied without prejudice Student's motion to exclude evidence Clovis allegedly withheld from a records request, finding it premature because admissibility is decided at the prehearing conference and hearing.
- Order Denying Motion to Reopen RecordOAH denied Student's motion to reopen the hearing record to correct Parent's testimony. The change was substantive, not clerical, and Student gave no reason for waiting until after closing briefs were filed.
2023
- Order Granting Request for Reconsideration and Overruling Student's ObjectionOAH granted Student's reconsideration request but overruled as premature his objection to limits on evidence about the underlying incident, holding evidentiary rulings will be made at hearing; all dates confirmed.
- Order Taking Official Notice of School CalendarsALJ announced intent to take official notice of District's 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 school calendars, which were not entered at hearing, because they provide relevant and necessary information.
- Order Concerning Admission Into Evidence of District's Exhibit 19OAH will admit District's Exhibit 19, the June 7, 2022 amendment IEP, unless a party objects by October 26, 2023, because the ALJ mistakenly stamped it 'Admitted' in Case Center.
- Order Denying Motion to QuashOAH refused to strike a district psychologist's hearing testimony over an alleged conflict of interest, ruling that credibility challenges affect the weight of evidence, not whether it is admissible.
- Order Denying Request to Reopen Administrative RecordOAH refused to reopen the closed hearing record so Parent could cross-examine witnesses she missed. Parent gave no sworn declaration or medical proof that a medical emergency kept her from attending the video hearing.
- Order Denying Motions in LimineOAH denied San Francisco Unified's two motions in limine because limiting liability is improper summary adjudication and the request to exclude settlement communications named no specific evidence.
- Order Denying Motions in LimineOAH denied without prejudice San Francisco's motions in limine to limit evidence by date and exclude settlement communications, finding blanket pre-hearing exclusion premature and leaving admissibility to the hearing ALJ.
- Order Denying Student's Motion to Retain Essential Witness Schedule, and Clarifying Procedures for WitnessesOAH denied Student's motion to keep a proposed nine-day witness schedule because it had witnesses testifying repeatedly and did not identify witnesses for Phase One, which concerns the settlement agreement.
- Order Denying Request to Present Additional Evidence and WitnessesOAH denied Student's request to call witnesses and present evidence at a motion hearing on reopening the record, because that hearing was set only for oral argument.
- Order Granting Request for Official Notice of Due Process Hearing Decision in Office of Administrative Hearings Case Number 2022020266OAH granted Goleta's unopposed request to take official notice of a prior OAH decision between the same parties, because it is a public record covering an overlapping time period.
2022
- Order Granting in Part, and Denying in Part, Goleta Union's Motion to Strike Portions of Student's Closing BriefOAH struck the attachments to Student's closing brief, which violated the ALJ's no-attachments order, but kept the three over-limit pages and let Goleta Union file three more pages of argument.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference and Granting Request for Official NoticeOAH granted Sacramento City's request for official notice of an earlier due process complaint and decision between the parties, finding them public records that may be relevant to the expedited manifestation determination claim.
- Order Granting Request for Official Notice of the Due Process Hearing Request and Decision in Office of Administrative Hearings Case Number 2022080223OAH granted Sacramento City Unified's unopposed request to take official notice of the complaint and decision in a prior case, because both are public records in OAH's file and may be relevant.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference; Order Granting Request for Continuance and Denying Motion to Exclude Student's EvidenceOAH denied Gonzales Unified's motion to exclude Student's late exhibits and instead briefly continued the hearing to November 30, 2022, giving the district time to review them.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference; Granting Motion for Audio Testimony; Denying Motion to Dismiss Without PrejudiceOAH let a Campbell witness testify by audio only as a reasonable accommodation, denied Campbell's request for Student's attorney's CART transcripts, and denied as moot Campbell's settlement-based motion to dismiss.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by VideoconferenceOAH granted Folsom-Cordova's motion to strike a Student witness who had served as the parties' mediator, and set Student's and the district's consolidated FAPE issues for a videoconference hearing starting October 11, 2022.
- Order Granting, In Part, Student's Motions In LimineOAH granted Student's motions for a closed hearing and to audio record, and excluded witnesses during others' testimony, except that Irvine's representative, like the educational rights holder, may attend every hearing day.
- Order Regarding Additional EvidenceOAH ordered both parties to file a complete copy of their final settlement agreement before it rules on Compton Unified's motion to dismiss, because neither side had submitted the full agreement.
- Order Denying Request to Complete Administrative Record With Records Produced Pursuant to Subpoena Duces TecumsOAH denied Grossmont Union's post-hearing request to admit unadmitted subpoenaed records as untimely, since the District had ample time during hearing and before closing briefs, and admission would prejudice Student.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference, Order Granting Motion for Judicial Notice, Order Denying Motion for Mediation and Continuance, and Order Denying Motion to DismissOAH denied Ventura's motion to dismiss because a prior decision exiting Student from special education in October 2021 did not resolve claims about his March 2021 IEP, but it took judicial notice of that decision.
- Order Granting Motion to Strike Exhibit 1 From the Motion to AmendOAH struck an email thread that Student attached to a motion to amend because it reflected confidential mediation communications. No ALJ will consider the exhibit.
- Order for Grossmont Union to Upload Admitted Exhibits to Online Evidence ProgramOAH ordered Grossmont Union to separately upload subpoenaed exhibits it had already gotten admitted, or have them excluded, because it had not followed the ALJ's earlier oral order to do so.
- Order Admitting Into Evidence Academic Calendars Exhibits D33 and D34OAH admitted Grossmont Union's 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 school calendars into evidence after the hearing, because they were included in the exhibits but never formally moved into evidence.
- Order Denying Student's Request for Continuance and Granting Request to Upload Exhibits Into Case CenterOAH denied Student's request to continue the hearing over exhibit-upload problems for lack of good cause, but allowed Student until April 15, 2022 to upload exhibits, including IEP recordings, into Case Center.
- Order Granting in Part and Denying in Part Motion to Add WitnessesOAH let Student call one late-disclosed witness, Anna Lopez, but denied the rest because Student's declaration explained the witnesses' relevance, not why they were disclosed late.
- Order Denying Motion to Strike Exhibits and Granting Motion to Exclude Expert WitnessOAH kept Student's late-uploaded exhibits because the delay was in good faith and caused no prejudice, but barred an undisclosed, unnamed executive functioning expert from testifying except in rebuttal.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by VideoconferenceOAH denied Washington's motion to bifurcate and its motion in limine to bar claims allegedly waived by a settlement agreement, because whether the settlement applies is a fact question for hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference, Continuing Prehearing Conference and Hearing, and Denying Motion to Exclude WitnessesOAH denied Student's request to bar all Long Beach witnesses except one non-testifying representative from the hearing, because a district may keep a designated representative present, much as a parent helps their attorney.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by VideoconferenceOAH denied Student's motion to exclude Del Mar's Director of Special Education as a witness and set a two-day video hearing on whether Del Mar's assessments defeat Student's request for independent evaluations.
2021
- Order Clarifying That Pages D354 and D355 of District's Exhibit 25 Are AdmittedOAH confirmed that pages D354 and D355 of Madera Unified's Exhibit 25 are in evidence. They had been admitted without objection during testimony but were left out of the end-of-hearing exhibit review.
- Order Granting Student's Request for Order Directing Enterprise Elementary School District to Comply With Prehearing Conference OrderOAH ordered Enterprise to upload a table of contents and exhibit cover sheets to CaseLines the same day, as the prehearing conference order required, after Enterprise admitted it had not done so.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference and Denying Motion to Exclude Expert WitnessesOAH dismissed Cajon Valley's motion to exclude Student's expert witnesses as moot after Student agreed to call only the one disclosed expert and to provide that expert's resume.
- Order Requiring Del Mar Union School District to Restore Hearing ExhibitsOAH ordered Del Mar Union to restore all of its hearing exhibits it deleted from Caselines after dismissal, because admitted exhibits are part of the official record, and warned of possible sanctions.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference, Denying Motion to Continue Hearing, and Denying Request for Official NoticeOAH denied Student's request for official notice of prior OAH rulings, a Senate bill, and COVID executive orders because they were not technical or scientific matters, and denied Ventura's late continuance request.
- Supplemental Order Issued at Hearing and Continuing Due Process HearingOAH ordered Student to reorganize and re-upload exhibits that violated the prehearing conference order, warned of a possible order to show cause on sanctions, and continued the hearing to June 17, 2021.
- Supplemental Orders Issued During Due Process Hearing and Continuing Due Process HearingOAH denied Student's request for judicial notice of prior OAH rulings, a Senate bill, and Governor's orders, ordered briefing on its jurisdiction over a settlement-based claim, and warned Student of sanctions over noncompliant exhibits.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by Videoconference Denying Request for Continuance of Prehearing Conference Without Prejudice, and Denying Request for Judicial Notice Without PrejudiceOAH denied Student's request for official notice as premature because hearing had not started. It also denied Saugus' continuance because the conflicting hearing dates in another case were only speculative.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by VideoconferenceOAH refused official notice of prior OAH decisions and Senate Bill 98 but took notice of the Governor's executive orders. It also denied Pleasant Valley's continuance because its attorney had no actual calendar conflict.
- Order Denying Motion to Reopen RecordOAH refused to reopen the closed hearing record to admit Student's grade transcript, which was never disclosed before hearing, cited no legal authority, and would unfairly prejudice Long Beach without witness testimony.
- Order Denying Motions to Exclude Counsel for Witnesses and to Strike Counsel's Statements and Maxim Healthcare's OppositionOAH denied Student's motions to exclude a nonparty witnesses' attorney from the closed hearing and to strike her statements, instead limiting her access to exhibits through a protective order.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Hearing by VideoconferenceOAH denied Pivot's request to keep one Parent out of the hearing while the other Parent testifies, because both Parents are parties to the case and may be present at all times.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference Granting Request for Continuance; Order Granting Request for Official Notice; Order Granting in Part and Denying in Part Motion to DismissOAH took official notice of COVID-19 health orders, continued the hearing for an unavailable witness, and dismissed Student's Section 504, ADA, and constitutional claims. It kept the in-person services and bullying claims.
- Order Denying Motion to Reopen RecordOAH refused to let District add late-found IEP goals pages mid-hearing. The document was not exchanged five business days before hearing, and District showed no good cause.
2020
- Order Granting Request for Official NoticeOAH granted Student's unopposed request for official notice of four state and federal COVID-19 special education guidance documents because they are public records.
- Order Granting Motion to Take Judicial Notice and Apply Collateral EstoppelOAH took official notice of a prior OAH decision and two federal court orders, and barred Student from relitigating whether three 2018 IEPs offered a FAPE in the least restrictive environment.
- Order Denying Official NoticeOAH refused to take official notice of two California Department of Education publications Student offered after 20 hearing days, finding them untimely disclosed, unauthenticated, of questionable relevance, and full of hearsay.
- Order Denying Motion to Strike and Granting Request for Official NoticeOAH struck the Covid-19 materials Norris cited in its closing brief, including webinar notes, a position paper, and letters to Secretary DeVos, because Norris did not show they were proper for official notice.
- Order Granting Request for Official Notice, Overruling Objections to Videoconference Hearing, and Denying ContinuanceOAH overruled Antioch's objections to a videoconference due process hearing and refused to postpone the case until an in-person hearing was possible. State regulations authorize virtual hearings, and the 45-day timeline was never suspended for COVID-19.
- Order Requiring Student to Re-Submit Improperly Marked ExhibitsOAH ordered Student's counsel to resubmit and rename exhibits before hearing because several combined unrelated emails and others lacked the names required by the prehearing conference order.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference, Denying Student's Motion to Unexpedite, Denying Bakersfield City's Motions in Limine Without Prejudice, and Granting Bakersfield City's Motion to AmendOAH denied Bakersfield City's motions in limine as better decided at hearing, denied Student's unopposed motion to unexpedite because it relied on facts not in the complaint, and granted the District leave to amend.
- Order Following January 17, 2020 Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied without prejudice Long Beach Unified's motion to exclude testimony from Student and Student's attorney, finding it premature to decide the testimony would waste time, prejudice, or confuse issues.
- Order Granting Motion to Exclude Testimony of StudentOAH barred both parties from calling Student as a witness, finding his testimony would be cumulative and unnecessarily time-consuming; the District did not oppose.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student's out-of-country witness testify by telephone over Alta Loma's timing objection because the witness is in England, and set the hearing on whether the May 2019 IEP offered a FAPE.
2019
- Order Granting Greenfield's Request for Official NoticeOAH granted Greenfield's request to officially notice a prior 2018 OAH decision involving the same Student, because OAH's own records can be noticed, though the district cited the wrong legal grounds.
- Order Granting Request for Telephonic Testimony and Ordering All Parties to AppearOAH let Father testify by telephone because of his recent health issues, and denied the districts' request to continue the hearing so he could testify in person.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH barred the school board president and superintendent from testifying because Parents had not shown their relevance, but allowed the pupil services director and principal, who had direct involvement with Student.
- Order Following October 21, 2019 Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request to let two witnesses testify by telephone over Colton Joint Unified's objection, because both work within a reasonable distance of the hearing location, and set the District's case for hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Granting Motion in Limine, in Part; and Denying Motion to DismissOAH barred Student from seeking reimbursement for costs before November 8, 2017, based on a prior decision. It let other evidence in and denied the District's motion to dismiss private-school remedies as moot.
- Order Denying Request for Judicial Notice Without PrejudiceOAH denied without prejudice Student's request for judicial notice of district website documents and two superior court orders, because Student attached no copies and did not show relevance to hearing issues.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's requests to speak privately with the ALJ and to testify by written answers instead of appearing. It set transportation, aide, and private placement issues for hearing and excluded ADA claims.
- Order Granting Motion Excluding Evidence Outside the Record and Not Considering New IssuesOAH granted Golden Plains' motion and will disregard parts of Student's closing brief that cite evidence not admitted at hearing or raise new issues, because the record closed May 30, 2019.
- Order Denying Motion for Order to Show CauseOAH denied without prejudice Etiwanda's motion to make Student justify calling the superintendent as a witness, finding the issue is better decided at the prehearing conference or at the start of hearing.
- Order Denying Motion for an Order to Show CauseOAH denied District's request to make Student justify calling the superintendent as a witness. District cited no authority, and Student's witness listing met the scheduling order's requirements.
- Order Re Post-Hearing Questions and Briefing ScheduleOAH denied Student's request to continue the evidentiary hearing for lack of good cause, but allowed written follow-up questions to the principal, a sworn Parent statement, and set closing-brief deadlines.
- Order on Request for ClarificationOAH clarified the hearing will run in two phases. A first phase limited to the statute-of-limitations time period comes before the merits, and child find evidence is allowed in that phase only as it bears on timing.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied without prejudice Glendora Unified's request to avoid producing Student's newly named witnesses, ruling that relevance of the superintendent and health clerk must be decided at hearing on actual evidence.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Denying Student's Hearing Continuance Request; Denying Upland's Application of Collateral Estoppel RequestOAH refused to apply collateral estoppel from a prior decision because Upland's 2019 assessment plan is a different plan from its 2018 plan. It also denied Student's continuance request because Parents skipped the prehearing conference.
- Order Granting Request for Telephonic Testimony of Dr. Diann TackettOAH granted Student's unopposed request to let Dr. Diann Tackett testify by telephone because she lives in Colorado, subject to conditions to be set at the prehearing conference.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student's nonpublic agency supervisor testify by telephone over Long Beach's objection, on strict conditions, and set two issues for a May 2019 hearing on monthly IEP goal progress meetings.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied, without prejudice, Student's motion to limit Sally Kirk's testimony on attorney-client privilege grounds, and set the issues and rules for a three-day consolidated hearing at Middletown Middle School.
- Order Denying Motion in Limine to Exclude Without PrejudiceOAH denied Student's motion in limine without prejudice because it was too vague to identify the evidence to exclude and was premature before prehearing conference statements were filed.
- Order Granting Student's Request to Admit Supplemental Evidence Regarding Ex Parte MemorandumOAH admitted Student's time-stamped copy of an email as supplemental Exhibit A-1 because the record stays open until the hearing ends. The earlier March 12, 2019 fees order stays in effect.
- Order Granting Milpitas' Motion to Strike Confidential Settlement Discussions From Parent's Reply to Milpitas' Closing BriefOAH struck the part of Parent's reply brief that revealed confidential settlement discussions, but refused Milpitas' request to strike new arguments or evidence in the reply.
- Order Continuing Due Process Hearing for Recalled Witness and Setting Status ConferenceOAH continued the consolidated hearing to April 2, 2019, so Dr. Holly Reed could be recalled about documents she produced under San Marcos's subpoena, and admitted most of Student's audio recordings but excluded one.
- Order Denying Student's Motion in Limine Without PrejudiceOAH denied without prejudice Student's motion to bar a therapist's testimony and records under the psychotherapist-patient privilege because Student offered no evidence of the therapy relationship, confidentiality, or the therapist's credentials.
- Order Granting Motion to Not Rely on Evidence Outside the RecordOAH will not consider documents cited in Student's closing brief that were never admitted at hearing, but Student may still cite Office of Civil Rights and special education policy guidance as legal argument.
- Order Granting Garden Grove's Request for Official Notice and Denying Garden Grove's Motion for a Pre-Hearing Determination of FactOAH took official notice of a prior decision but denied Garden Grove's pre-hearing motion seeking a res judicata ruling on Parents' independent evaluation request, because special education law has no summary judgment procedure.
- Order Denying Motion to Strike, and Accepting Stipulation of FactsOAH denied Student's motion to strike District's post-hearing response but refused to consider District's new witness declarations as evidence because Student could not cross-examine them, and accepted the parties' joint stipulation of facts.
2018
- Order to File Audio Recordings on Thumb Drives and Compact Disc by Electronic TransferOAH ordered Student to file by electronic transfer, by January 3, 2019, the IEP meeting audio recordings and a voicemail recording submitted on thumb drives and a CD, because Student had not complied with an earlier order.
- Order Denying Student's Motion to Admit New EvidenceOAH denied Student's request to admit a traffic ticket and a prior case's notice of withdrawal because Student never disclosed or exchanged them within the five-business-day evidence deadline.
- Order Granting in Part and Denying in Part Request for Official Notice; Denying Motions in Limine and Denying Motion to Dismiss on the Grounds of Collateral EstoppelOAH denied Antioch's motions to bar all CDE documents and evidence of unilateral removal, and refused to dismiss Student's issues on collateral estoppel grounds because the issues were not identical to those previously decided.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Order Denying Student's Continuance RequestOAH denied Student's untimely request to continue the hearing for lack of good cause, but let Student's two experts testify by phone over San Marcos's objection because of their recent health issues.
- Order Following Status ConferenceOAH let Student's East Coast witness testify by phone over Orinda's objection and ordered the parties to fill a 35- to 40-minute gap in OAH's hearing recording using their own recordings.
- Order Denying Request for Judicial NoticeOAH denied Student's post-hearing request for judicial notice of a 2011 California Department of Education investigation report as untimely, because Student never disclosed it five business days before hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH required Capistrano to give Student its Nelson-Denny test manual before hearing if used as an exhibit, let Student's out-of-state experts testify by phone, and denied phone testimony for Capistrano's Pasadena expert.
- Order Requiring Confirmation That District's Exhibit 16 Is CompleteOAH ordered both parties to file any missing goal pages from District's Exhibit 16, a June 2017 IEP, or confirm it is complete, because the IEP listed four goal areas but contained only two goals.
- Order Granting Campbell's Motion to StrikeOAH struck Student's two post-hearing exhibits because neither was an article on remote assessment testing, as the ALJ's order required. The six-minute late filing itself caused no prejudice.
- Order Denying Request for Official NoticeOAH denied Student's request for official notice of Education Code section 56324(b) on health assessor qualifications, finding official notice unnecessary because the ALJ can consider statutes without it.
- Order Sustaining Student's Objection to Admission of Del Mar's Exhibit 106OAH excluded Del Mar's two-minute video clips of a 45-minute restraint of Student. The clips repeated testimony and incident reports already in evidence, and showing only part of the incident made them more prejudicial than probative.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Granting in Part Student's Motion for Official Notice; Denying Student's Motion for Stay; and Denying River Springs's Motion Re: Statute of Limitations/Bifurcation as MootOAH took official notice only of a federal court's stay put order and refused to pause the due process hearing for River Springs's Ninth Circuit appeal, finding it lacked authority and delay would undermine a timely FAPE decision.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Denying Respondent's Motion to Dismiss; and Granting Respondent's Request for Official NoticeOAH denied Respondents' motion to dismiss on res judicata grounds because Student's prior written notice claim was never decided in the earlier case, and the IDEA allows separate complaints on new issues.
- Order Denying Student's Motion in Limine to Exclude District's EvidenceOAH denied without prejudice Student's motion to bar Compton from offering evidence of IEP meetings or offers after May 31, 2018, because that evidence may bear on remedies and Compton's defense.
- Order Denying Student's Motion in Limine to Exclude District EvidenceOAH denied without prejudice Student's motion to bar Compton from presenting evidence of IEP meetings or offers after May 31, 2018, because that evidence may bear on remedies and Compton's defense.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Antioch's motion to bar all evidence about Parent's earlier California Department of Education complaints. The district may still object at hearing that specific evidence is irrelevant.
- Order Accepting Joint Stipulation and Order Setting Rebuttal HearingOAH let District present limited rebuttal testimony responding to Parent's hearing testimony. It barred rebuttal on a minor collateral credibility issue about Student's counsel's ties to a private school under Evidence Code section 352.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's second request to continue the hearing and denied telephonic testimony for a local expert, finding no good cause and noting hearings are not stayed for related court cases.
- Order Granting District's Request for Official NoticeOAH took official notice of a prior OAH decision on District's 2017 assessments, but only for evaluating collateral estoppel, and ordered District to file a written motion defining the preclusive effect it seeks.
- Order Deferring Ruling on Student's Motion for Protective OrderOAH deferred ruling until hearing on an 18-year-old Student's unopposed request to bar Berkeley from calling her as a witness. Berkeley must make an offer of proof if it wants her testimony.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference and Denying Student's Motion in LimineOAH denied Student's motion in limine to limit Pittsburg's defense to records it produced in response to Student's records request, because the motion was filed late without good cause.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference and Denying Motion to Bifurcate and Granting Motion to Change VenueOAH denied Berkeley's motion to bifurcate but ordered statute of limitations evidence heard first, granted the unopposed venue change, and denied Student's untimely, unsupported motions to exclude evidence and witnesses without prejudice.
- Order Directing Parties to Present Evidence at Start of Hearing on District's Pending Motions Based on Attorney-Client PrivilegeOAH deferred ruling on District's motions over a recorded lunch-break conversation with its attorney, ordering witness testimony at the start of hearing because sworn declarations conflicted on whether Father stayed in the room.
- Order Granting Motion to Receive Redacted Records, and Order Closing Record on Expedited Claims and Directing Final BriefingOAH granted Student's unopposed motion to admit Child Welfare Services records with sibling interviews redacted, closed the record on the expedited claims, and kept final briefs due April 27, 2018.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH barred Student from relitigating residency and the start date of District's FAPE duty. Collateral estoppel did not apply because the prior decisions were on appeal, but OAH cannot revisit issues it already decided.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH granted Student's motion to let a witness testify by telephone and set the hearing on whether District's February 20, 2018 IEP offered a FAPE, so it could be implemented without Parent's consent.
- Order Granting Motion to Admit Child Welfare Service RecordsOAH allowed Parent to introduce redacted child welfare services records obtained from San Diego County, at Parent's own risk. District cited no authority requiring exclusion, and the records may show District knew of a suspected disability.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH held that a prior unappealed decision binds the parties only on Dublin's unclear January 2016 IEP offer. Parent must still prove her other claims and remedies. OAH also allowed a telephonic witness over Dublin's objection.
- Order Sustaining Kern County's Objections to September 13, 2017 IEP Meeting Transcript/Recording (Exhibit 28)OAH refused to admit Student's recording and transcript of a September 2017 IEP meeting as rebuttal evidence, finding it irrelevant to the October 2017 IEP at issue and not properly disclosed.
- Order Denying Student's Request for Judicial NoticeOAH denied Student's request for judicial notice of a California Department of Education investigation report because the report involved different parties and was irrelevant to this case.
- Order to Comply With Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH ordered Student's counsel to renumber exhibits from letters (A through PPPPPP) to numbers as the prehearing order required, finding lettered exhibits confusing and nearly impossible to transcribe.
- Order Denying District's Motion in Limine to Exclude Student's Witnesses and EvidenceOAH denied District's motion to exclude Student's two expert witnesses and their independent evaluation reports as premature, because District had not yet seen the reports and could not know their content.
- Order Removing Attorney Work Product From Exhibit S-1OAH removed page 1 from Student's admitted Exhibit S-1 because it was Student's counsel's attorney work product, not part of the baseline data sheets, and warned counsel that future lapses could bring sanctions.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference, Denying Student's Motion to Continue, Granting Aveson's Motion for Official Notice, and Denying Without Prejudice Aveson's Motion to Limit IssuesOAH took official notice of a 2015 decision between the same parties but refused to bar Student's similar issues, because the new case covers a different time period; Student's continuance request was denied.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student's out-of-state expert testify by telephone and set Student's FAPE claims for a February 20, 2018 hearing, requiring physical exhibit binders be provided to the witness beforehand.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference and Denying Motion in LimineOAH denied Palo Alto's motion to exclude six Student witnesses because the District gave no good cause for raising it at the prehearing conference instead of three days before.
- Order Granting Request for Reconsideration; Denying Motions to Dismiss for Insufficiency or Lack of Jurisdiction; and Denying Motion in LimineOAH reconsidered but again refused to dismiss Brentwood's expedited complaint seeking an interim placement, finding Letter to Huefner does not require a prior manifestation determination and that OAH has no summary judgment procedure.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let District present three Utah residential treatment center staff by telephone and set one issue for hearing: whether District offered an appropriate setting for Student's emotional and transition needs in 2016-2017.
- Order Following Status ConferenceOAH confirmed the January 10, 2018 hearing date after Parent declined continuances for two unavailable witnesses, and ordered Upland Unified to make witness Aaron Dover available to testify.
- Order Denying Student's Motion for Telephonic TestimonyOAH denied Student's motion to let a witness testify by phone because only a non-attorney advocate signed it, and non-attorneys cannot represent a child in a special education due process case.
- Order: 1) Continuing Due Process Hearing; 2) Reopening Record for Additional Testimony; 3) Setting Continued Due Process Hearing Date; 4) Requiring Replacement Pages of Exhibits; and 5) Providing Notice of Intent to Take Official Notice of Additional California Department of Education PublicationOAH reopened the hearing record on its own motion and called a District adapted PE specialist to testify over District's objection, using the ALJ's authority under Education Code section 56505.1(d).
2017
- Order Denying Without Prejudice Student's Motion for Telephonic TestimonyOAH denied without prejudice Student's request for an expert to testify by phone because the motion did not show whether the witness lived in Colorado or was only temporarily away.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let a District witness testify by telephone, dismissed Student's Section 504, ADA, and state civil rights claims for lack of jurisdiction, and set five IDEA issues for a November 2017 hearing.
- Order Re: Motion to Submit EvidenceOAH denied Student's motion to submit evidence as moot because the ALJ had already ruled that Student could exchange exhibits five business days before the continued hearing.
- Order Denying: Requests for Reconsideration; Request to Reclassify the Hearing from Closed to Open; Request to Stay the Proceedings; and Request to Reopen the Hearing for Additional TestimonyOAH denied all of Student's post-hearing motions because they rested on Mother's disagreement with the ALJ's rulings. The motions sought reconsideration of evidentiary rulings, an open hearing, a stay, and reopening testimony.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH declined to dismiss Student's case for failure to prosecute and let the self-represented Mother go forward, limited to School's exhibits after she failed to exchange her own, and set five issues for hearing.
- Order Regarding Documentary Evidence; Order Regarding Testimonial Evidence and Requiring Parties to Provide Notice of Intent to Rely on Prior Testimony; and Notice of ALJ's Discretion to Consider Prior Testimony and to Incorporate Prior Factual Findings and Legal ConclusionsOAH required new evidence binders for the non-expedited hearing and said the ALJ may rely on testimony from the earlier expedited hearings and will incorporate the prior expedited findings and conclusions.
- Order Regarding Replacement Copy of Student's Exhibit 4ALJ ordered Student and District each to file a copy of Student's Exhibit 4, an admitted functional behavior assessment, after it was mistakenly returned to Student's attorney instead of being kept for the record.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Order Denying Joint Motion to ConsolidateOAH denied the parties' joint motion to consolidate with case 2017090517, let a District witness testify by phone from out of state, and set the hearing issues and dates.
- Order Deny Motion to Admit EvidenceOAH denied Parent's post-hearing motion to admit a new document because the evidentiary record had closed when closing briefs were filed, making the motion untimely.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let both sides present certain witnesses by telephone and set the issues and procedures for a September 2017 hearing on whether District failed to assess and identify Student for special education.
- Order on Admissibility of Excerpts of Transcript of Unlawful Audio Recording for Impeachment Purposes OnlyOAH excluded Parent's secret audio recording of an IEP meeting and every transcript excerpt Student offered. The recording violated Penal Code section 632, and none of the excerpts were truly inconsistent with the witnesses' hearing testimony.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student's witness Sandra Burke testify by telephone over New Haven's objection, granted audio recording of the hearing, and set six issues on eligibility, assessment, and transition planning for hearing.
- Order Excluding Audiotape for Any Purpose Other Than Impeachment and Order for Separate Briefing on Evidentiary IssuesOAH excluded Parent's secret audio recording of an IEP meeting as evidence because Parent knowingly recorded without the required 24-hour notice, but allowed limited use to impeach inconsistent witness testimony.
- Order Following Expedited Prehearing ConferenceOAH set nine manifestation determination issues for an expedited hearing against Snowline and denied Student's oral request for a telephonic witness because the witness was not disclosed and no burden was shown.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let a Santa Paula witness testify by phone, denied without prejudice Ventura's request to do the same, and refused to reconsider its denial of bifurcation. Instead it ordered Ventura-related witnesses to be called first.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let District's Bright Futures Academy witnesses testify by phone, but denied District's renewed request to move the hearing because Parent had opposed it earlier and was absent from this conference.
- Order Following Expedited Prehearing ConferenceOAH set expedited hearing issues on whether Oakland may move Student to an interim setting, and denied Student's request to call Oakland's attorney as a witness because necessity and relevance were not shown.
- Order Denying Student's Motion to Strike Witness TestimonyOAH denied Student's motion to strike a witness's testimony because Student did not show the testimony revealed any confidential mediation or settlement communications; no mediation had taken place.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Granting, in Part, Motion to Allow Telephonic Testimony; and Continuing Prehearing Conference and HearingOAH let Student's Colorado-based behavior expert testify by phone but denied phone testimony for a local psychologist, because Student gave no declaration showing he could not appear in person.
- Order Denying Request to Reopen RecordOAH denied Student's post-hearing request to reopen the record for new evidence, including an IEP meeting recording, because Student showed no good cause for not offering it during the hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference and Denying Motions for Change of Venue and Telephonic TestimonyOAH denied District's requests to move the hearing closer to Student's nonpublic school and to let its staff testify by phone, because the hearing must be convenient to Parent and District can subpoena witnesses.
- Order Granting Student's Motion to Strike District's Written Closing Argument and Ordering District to Refile in Accordance With RequirementsOAH struck Fremont's written closing argument because the district shrank its font and line spacing to fit more than the ordered 10 double-spaced, 12-point pages, and allowed a compliant refiling.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference of June 5, 2017OAH granted Student's requests for two out-of-county witnesses to testify by phone and to audio-record the hearing. It also dismissed Student's FERPA claims as beyond OAH's jurisdiction and set the hearing issues.
- Order Sustaining Objection to Student's Exhibit 84; Order Denying Student's Request to File Case Decision ConfidentiallyOAH excluded Parent's partial transcript of a later IEP meeting because it fell outside the hearing's time frame and could be out of context, and refused to keep the decision non-public.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let two District special education directors attend the hearing as District representatives over Student's objection, even though both may testify, because each knows about a different time period at issue.
- Order Denying Student's Request to Reopen Hearing and Present EvidenceOAH denied Student's requests to reopen a completed hearing and add documents and written testimony, finding Father went to District's main office after the hearing ended, not to the hearing site.
- Order Continuing Hearing to May 8, 2017, and Specifying Matters to Be ConsideredOAH continued Fremont's assessment-without-consent hearing to May 8 so Father's witness could testify. It excluded an irrelevant exhibit and required Father to make an offer of proof before any of his witnesses testify.
- Amended Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request to have Dr. Johnson testify by phone because a work-schedule conflict does not show unavailability. On Student's reconsideration request, it added an independent neuropsychological evaluation claim to the hearing issues.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH set Student's child find, assessment, and procedural claims for an April 2017 hearing. It denied her request for Dr. Johnson to testify by phone because a work-schedule conflict is not enough.
- Amended Order Denying Student's Motion in LimineOAH denied Student's motion in limine to bar Tracy from offering evidence of events after its due process filing, finding no legal support and noting after-acquired evidence can be relevant.
- Order Denying Student's Motion in LimineOAH denied Student's motion in limine to bar Tracy from offering evidence of events after its due process filing, finding no legal support and noting after-acquired evidence can be relevant.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request to have his expert testify by telephone over Sylvan's objection, noting in-person testimony is preferred and phone testimony makes judging the expert's credibility harder.
- Order Granting Admission of Audio Recordings of May 1, May 14, and September 5, 2014 IEP Team MeetingsOAH admitted audio recordings of three 2014 IEP meetings after the hearing ended, because District did not oppose, but denied Student's request to continue the hearing to supplement the record.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's requests to have a witness testify by phone and to continue the hearing for more mediation, citing no good cause, but moved the hearing to OAH's San Diego office.
- Order Denying Request for Official NoticeOAH denied District's post-hearing request for official notice of a CDE compliance investigation report because the copy was incomplete, the cited authorities did not apply, and the report was not relevant.
- Order on Admissibility of Student's Exhibits 90, 98, 99, 125, 127, and 129 and Denying Motion for ReconsiderationOAH excluded Student's offered prior-hearing testimony and nonpublic school incident reports for lack of relevance and foundation, and denied the District's motion to reconsider admitting another Student exhibit.
- Order Following Status Conference and Setting March 13, 2017 at 9:30 A.M. as the Final Day of Hearing by TelephoneOAH denied Parent's request to call three District staff as rebuttal witnesses because Student's former attorney had named Parent as the only rebuttal witness, and their testimony would be duplicative or irrelevant.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference and Granting Request for Witness to Appear by TelephoneOAH let Student's pediatrician testify by telephone over San Juan's opposition, finding good cause, and set issues on home-hospital instruction, reading and writing goals, and a clear IEP offer for hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Granting Request to Continue Hearing DatesOAH let three Esther B. Clark staff testify by telephone over the District's objection. It also moved the hearing start by one day because Student's advocate was ordered to appear in district court.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Lucia Mar's former Director of Student Services testify by phone from about 90 miles away. It denied the District's request to continue the prehearing conference and set two consent-override issues for a March 2017 hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference and Granting Motion for Telephonic TestimonyOAH granted Student's motion to let Dr. Bretten Pickering testify by telephone, on the condition that the witness receives complete physical exhibit binders, and set the hearing on Student's transportation claims.
- Order Following Second Prehearing Conference for Phase Two of Bifurcated HearingOAH denied Student's request to have Dr. David Libert testify by phone or Skype. Student had known the hearing dates since December and did not show why remote testimony was needed.
- Order Denying Motions in LimineOAH denied Student's motions in limine to exclude District witnesses and IEP meeting documents because Student filed no good-cause declaration required by the prehearing order, and because bias and interpretation are hearing issues.
- Order Following Trial Setting Conference After RemandOAH will hold an evidentiary hearing on remedies after a federal court remand, allowing relevant evidence up to the present, because the record had almost no evidence on compensatory education.
- Order Granting Continuance, Striking Witness Testimony and Admission of Documents and Setting Additional Hearing DatesOAH continued the hearing over Newport-Mesa's objection and struck the first witness's testimony and two admitted exhibits because an unreliable phone line kept Student's ill mother from hearing or being heard.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH excluded Student's father as a hearing witness because Mother has sole legal custody and a restraining order. It denied Mother's continuance request for lack of good cause.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference of January 6, 2017OAH denied Student's request to present expert testimony by affidavit or declaration because it would deprive District of cross-examination, while granting a one-day continuance and setting three issues for hearing.
2016
- Order Admitting Student's Exhibit 85 Into EvidenceOAH admitted portions of the DSM-5 on post-traumatic stress disorder as Student's Exhibit S85 after both districts raised no opposition.
- Order Denying Request for Judicial NoticeOAH denied East Side's post-hearing request for judicial notice of 241 pages of juvenile court records. The records came too late, were largely unexplained, contained hearsay expert opinions, and were under a protective order.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference, Denying Student's Motion to Dismiss, and Granting Motion to Limit the Issue for Due ProcessOAH denied Student's motion to dismiss Dublin's complaint because it sought a merits ruling like summary judgment, and let Dublin reframe its issue around a specific IEP to resolve jurisdiction concerns.
- Order Taking Official Notice of Geographical DistancesOAH took official notice that Andrew Hill High School is 0.5 miles from Student's home on foot and 1.5 miles by car. Distances between places are indisputable facts, and the districts did not respond.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH consolidated District's assessment-defense case with Student's broader FAPE case, without objection, because both concern District's 2014 assessments of Student. It also let Dr. Karres testify by phone if needed.
- Order on Motion for Telephonic Testimony and Setting Additional Hearing DayOAH denied Student's request to finish his expert's testimony by phone, because Sacramento deserved the same chance to cross-examine in person and the ALJ wanted consistent credibility observations.
- Order on Waiver of Psychotherapist-Patient PrivilegeOAH found the psychotherapist-patient privilege waived because Mother, suing on Student's behalf, put Student's mental condition at issue, but required a showing of compelling need before admitting confidential communications.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference of October 24, 2016OAH denied Student's request for the Winston School director to testify by telephone, finding the school is only about 20 miles away and a busy schedule is not enough; OAH granted Student's venue change.
- Order Identifying Exhibits Previously Marked and Admitted Through Judicial NoticeOAH memorialized its hearing ruling taking judicial notice of Student's two earlier OAH complaints and withdrawal requests, marked as District Exhibits D-56 and D-57, and attached copies at Student's request.
- Order Denying Motion to Consolidate and Denying Motion to Exclude Evidence Regarding Morgan Hill's AssessmentsOAH denied Morgan Hill's motion to consolidate because Student's placement case and the district's assessment case raise distinct legal issues. OAH also denied the district's unsupported request to bar assessment evidence.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference of May 23, 2016; Order Granting in Part and Denying in Part Motion to Dismiss IssuesOAH let District's case to validate its January 2016 IEP offer go forward, but dismissed District's issue about its own due process response because that issue does not involve a FAPE dispute OAH can decide.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH excluded witnesses from the hearing room and let Student question District's experts on everything they relied on, but did not bar District witnesses from talking with counsel during the hearing.
- Order Denying Student's Request for Telephonic Testimony by Witness Robert ImaniOAH denied without prejudice Student's late request to have expert Dr. Robert Imani testify by telephone because Student did not show good cause for missing the prehearing conference deadline.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied all four of Student's motions in limine. The rulings let District's special education director attend the full hearing and protected District attorneys' preparation talks with staff experts as privileged.
- Order Adding Exhibit to RecordOAH admitted District's Exhibit 42, Student's May 2015 triennial IEP, into evidence on its own motion because both parties had questioned witnesses extensively about it but no one formally moved it in.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's motion to bar District's expert testimony because District substantially complied with the scheduling order and federal civil discovery rules do not apply in OAH proceedings.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request to let a witness testify by telephone because Contra Costa objected that the witness was only 20 minutes from the hearing site, and set transportation and IEE issues for hearing.
- Order Denying District's Motion to Allow Admittance of Supplemental EvidenceOAH denied the District's post-hearing request to add Parent's note accepting compensatory services as evidence, finding its minimal probative value was outweighed by undue consumption of time and delay.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference and Denying Motions in LimineOAH denied Student's motions in limine. Requests to pre-admit documents and limit District counsel's contact with witnesses were premature, and the request to exclude District's representative from hearing was denied.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH set five FAPE issues for a February 2016 hearing and rejected Student's request to strike a manifestation determination exhibit. It also overruled Student's objection to being listed as a District witness, since Student may never be called.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request to have an expert testify by telephone and set the consolidated case for hearing. Student may ask again if the expert's schedule prevents in-person testimony.
- Order Denying Student's Motion in Limine to Exclude Certain ExhibitsOAH denied Student's motion to exclude seven prior IEP and assessment exhibits, finding they may be relevant to what Ramona knew about Student's suspected areas of disability.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student call the principal on the parent-participation issue but barred the superintendent and assistant superintendent for lack of shown relevance, and struck an opening-statement claim as outside OAH's jurisdiction.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request to admit YouTube links instead of the actual video recordings, because third-party sites like YouTube cannot be relied on to preserve evidence. It allowed three expert witnesses to testify by telephone.
2015
- Order Denying Request to Submit Supplemental Documentary EvidenceOAH refused to let Student add a first-grade report card to the record after the hearing closed, because Student chose not to call the teacher and the hearsay report card would prejudice San Lorenzo.
- Order Denying Motion in Limine Without PrejudiceOAH denied without prejudice Student's motion in limine to admit an IEP meeting transcript. Admissibility of evidence is decided at the prehearing conference, and no PHC statements had been filed yet.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied, without prejudice, Student's request for a blind vision expert to testify by phone over District's objection. It ordered the expert to testify in person at OAH's Van Nuys office with disability accommodations.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH excluded non-party witnesses from the hearing but let Parents and District's designated representatives stay, and declined to issue advance blanket orders on witness coaching and expert-counsel communications.
- Order Granting Student's Motion to Admit Student's Exhibit S27 Into EvidenceOAH admitted Student's Exhibit S27 into evidence, overruling the Charter Schools' foundation and hearsay objections and leaving the exhibit's weight to be decided with the rest of the evidence.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference, Vacating and Discharging Order to Show Cause, and Continuing HearingOAH discharged an order to show cause after Student's counsel showed she had repeatedly tried to reach OAH for a missed prehearing conference. It also briefly continued the hearing, over Student's objection, because San Bruno could not locate two former-employee witnesses.
- Order Granting District's Motion to Reopen Testimony and Continuing the Hearing Until October 9, 2015OAH reopened testimony so District could call a program specialist as a rebuttal witness, finding good cause because she was unavailable on Yom Kippur. Student did not object if she appeared in person.
- Order Denying Motion to Exclude DocumentsOAH denied District's motion to exclude all of Student's documents served one day late, finding exclusion too severe a sanction for a non-willful delay that caused little prejudice.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student use transcripts of IEP meetings at hearing, with conditions, and dismissed Student's ADA, Unruh Act, and money damages claims as outside OAH's jurisdiction.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let two out-of-state witnesses for Student testify by telephone and set the consolidated hearing, the issues, and the rules for exhibits and witnesses in Student's and Rio School District's FAPE dispute.
- Order Denying Request to Conduct an Additional Day of HearingOAH refused to reopen a completed due process hearing for a post-hearing Lindamood-Bell assessment, finding Student had ample time to get the evidence before and during the hearing.
- Order Denying District's Motion in Limine Without PrejudiceOAH denied District's motion in limine to bar evidence on Student's eligibility before September 1, 2014, because whether a settlement released those claims requires factual findings at hearing.
- Order Denying Motion to Strike Portions of Student's Brief Exceeding 35 Pages, Denying Request for Reply Brief, and Granting Request to Strike Reference to Witness Who Did Not TestifyOAH refused to strike Student's over-length closing brief because Sacramento City's own brief also exceeded the 35-page limit, denied a reply brief, but struck testimony wrongly attributed to a non-testifying witness.
- Order Partially Granting Request for Accommodations Under the Americans With Disabilities ActOAH granted Student extra answer time, a non-courtroom room, and no judicial robe for testimony, but denied written questions and answers and a support person because they would fundamentally alter the proceedings.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH set issues for a June 2015 consolidated hearing. It let Student's expert testify by phone, allowed attorneys to audio record, and excluded non-testifying witnesses, but let the District keep one representative present.
- Order Granting Request to Re-Open Hearing for Presentation of Additional Evidence and Granting ContinuanceOAH re-opened the hearing so both sides could present more evidence on whether Rincon Valley should have offered Student a general education preschool with supports, because the District may have lacked notice of that issue.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing Conference in OAH Case Number 2015040452OAH denied Student's request for telephonic testimony by a local private occupational therapist but granted witness exclusion and party audiotaping of the hearing, after consolidating the cases without District opposition.
- Order Re Student's Motion to Allow Admittance of Documentary Evidence, Setting Oral Argument, With Tentative RulingOAH set oral argument for the next hearing day on Student's motion to admit an expert's late-disclosed assessment report and issued a tentative ruling to deny it.
- Prehearing Conference OrderOAH let Student withdraw three issues and present a speech evaluator by telephone over District's objections, and refused to bar older evidence in advance, leaving objections for the hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Consolidating Cases and Setting Due Process HearingOAH let each side make a personal audio recording of the hearing over District's objection, partly as a disability accommodation for Student's attorney, and consolidated the parties' cases by stipulation.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference on Expedited HearingOAH denied District's motion to continue the expedited hearing for lack of good cause, let Student's expert testify by phone, and set three manifestation-determination issues for hearing.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request that District's hearing representative be someone who will not testify, because District may choose its own representative, but let Student's attorney audio record the hearing with limits.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let District's witness testify by telephone because the parties' joint continuance made her unavailable in person, and set child find, eligibility, and IEE defense issues for the consolidated hearing.
- Order Granting Request for Official Notice and Requiring Further Motion to Be Filed by April 8, 2015OAH took official notice of a prior 2013 OAH decision only to evaluate collateral estoppel, and ordered District to file a written motion defining the preclusive effect it seeks.
- Order Granting Student's Motion to Allow Admittance of Documentary Evidence (Financial Records)OAH let self-represented Parents add late invoices and receipts supporting their residential placement reimbursement claim, finding good cause because Mother reasonably misread the prehearing order and District suffered no substantial prejudice.
- Order Denying Request for Telephonic TestimonyOAH denied Student's request to let expert Dr. Maria Abramson testify by phone, finding she was available and Student could reorder witnesses so she could testify in person.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH let Student's expert testify by phone, dismissed Student's Section 504, ADA, and state civil rights claims as outside its jurisdiction, and set a consolidated hearing on independent evaluation issues.
- Status Conference Order Re: Setting of Prehearing Conference and Due Process Hearing for Supplemental Testimony on Remand of IssuesOAH reopened the record on remand from federal court because several consented-to assessments were delayed until 2013 or never given. Student may show continuing loss of educational benefit, and District may address its IEP-implementation defense.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference of January 23, 2015OAH kept all of Student's issues for hearing, rejecting Spencer Valley's claims that they were moot or already decided, and refused to exclude Student's educational consultant from the hearing room before she testified.
2014
- Order Denying Student's Motion to Add Witnesses as MootOAH denied Student's motion to add witnesses as moot because the law only requires disclosure at least five business days before hearing, so Student may call them without OAH permission.
- Prehearing Conference OrderOAH let District's six out-of-state Utah treatment center witnesses testify by phone but deferred deciding on six local school witnesses, citing lower travel burden and the difficulty of judging credibility by phone.
- Order Granting District's Motion to Strike Amended Appendix B to Student's Closing BriefOAH struck Student's Amended Appendix B to the closing brief because it was filed late and improperly tried to add new evidence of private program costs after the hearing closed.
- Order Denying District's Request for Official NoticeOAH denied District's request for official notice of Student's earlier due process complaint because District gave no reason and the settled, never-decided pleading was irrelevant to the consolidated case.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference, Granting Motion for Telephonic Testimony, Denying Motion to Continue the Hearing and Denying Without Prejudice Student's Objections/Motion to Strike District's Witnesses and ExhibitsOAH denied Parent's request to continue the hearing over a witness's unavailability. The witness could testify in person on the first day or by phone, so OAH granted District's motion for her telephonic testimony.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Granting Motion to Continue; Resetting Hearing DatesOAH denied Student's requests for two doctors to testify by telephone because both live in the county where the hearing is held and Student showed no good cause. OAH also granted Student's continuance.
- Order Granting in Part Motion to Examine Witnesses at Hearing by TelephoneOAH let five named out-of-area witnesses for Student testify by telephone but denied the request for unnamed 'other' treatment team members because Student did not identify them by name.
- Order Regarding Replacement Copy of District's Exhibit 23OAH 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.
- Order to Provide Declarations and Supporting EvidenceOAH ordered all parties to submit sworn declarations or documents within five days because their stipulated facts on Student's residency, submitted for a decision on the papers, had no supporting evidence.
- Order Granting Motion for Telephonic TestimonyOAH let Oakland's expert testify by phone on the last hearing day because she would be out of town on a prior family commitment and Student showed no prejudice.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH set the consolidated hearing issues, let two Lincoln witnesses testify by phone, and deferred Lincoln's statute-of-limitations motions until evidence on the misrepresentation exception is heard first at hearing.
- Order Denying Student's Motion for Protective OrderOAH denied Student's request to remove an expert witness's name and employer from the Decision, despite reported threats to her job. Witnesses are named in public decisions, and Student cited no legal authority.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference of June 16, 2014; Denying Exclusion of Evidence Without Prejudice; Granting Motion for Reconsideration; Granting Request to Change Hearing VenueOAH denied Student's blanket motion to exclude District's IEP meeting notes as hearsay, because hearsay may supplement other evidence. OAH also reconsidered and moved the hearing to the San Diego OAH to accommodate counsel's hearing impairment.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH barred Student from calling witnesses other than those on District's list because Student never disclosed witnesses, and granted a joint two-day continuance so the parties could mediate.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Sacramento's request to have witness Stephan Brown testify by telephone over Student's objection because he can appear in person, and set a June 3, 2014 hearing on one IEP-meeting issue.
- Supplemental Order Following Pre-Hearing Conference Authorizing Additional WitnessesOAH allowed both sides to call the additional witnesses on their amended witness lists, but barred any extension of the hearing beyond the time the parties committed to at the prehearing conference.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request for a witness to testify by phone and District's request to continue the hearing, dismissed non-IDEA claims for lack of jurisdiction, and refused to dismiss the case as unripe.
- Order Regarding District's Motion to Compel Revision of Student's Evidence BinderOAH declined to rule on District's motion to make Student redo a disorganized evidence binder as moot, because an amended complaint continued the hearing and new binders will be exchanged.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH let two District witnesses testify by phone, denied the parties' joint request to continue the prehearing conference, and set Student's and District's issues for an April 28, 2014 hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request to make the District's special education director testify first or be excluded until she testified, and set A-G course, placement, and predetermination issues for an April 2014 hearing.
- Order Denying Student's Request for Official NoticeOAH denied Student's post-hearing request for official notice of assessment guides and professional materials because they were never exchanged before hearing and their application to the assessments was disputable.
- Order Denying Student's Motion to Strike District's Reply BriefOAH denied Student's motion to strike District's post-hearing reply brief, which was filed less than half a day late, because Student showed no prejudice and the brief did not respond to Student's rebuttal.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing Conference of March 3, 2014; Denying Request for ContinuanceOAH denied the self-represented Student's ADA-based continuance request for lack of supporting information and limited Student to District's exhibits because Student served no exhibit binder.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's motion in limine to limit District witness testimony and Student's request to keep a District representative out of the hearing room, and set the hearing and issues.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH set the issues for a consolidated February 2014 hearing and granted Student's request for Dr. Pion to testify by phone. District's motion to strike part of Student's proposed remedy was deferred to the first hearing day.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing Conference, Including Ruling on District's Motion to Dismiss IssuesOAH dismissed issues already decided in an earlier OAH case. It limited an aide's testimony to remedy because she began work after filing, and ordered District to give Student contact information for former employees.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; and Order Denying Request for Telephonic TestimonyOAH denied Student's request to have her key expert psychologist testify by phone. A busy schedule and discomfort seeing District staff did not outweigh District's right to cross-examine in person.
2013
- Corrected Order on Motions to Admit/Exclude Transcript Excerpts as EvidenceOAH admitted some of Student's IEP-meeting transcript excerpts as rebuttal evidence, including an assistant principal's prior statement calling an incident bullying, but excluded duplicative, irrelevant, or multi-layered hearsay excerpts from both sides.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH granted Student's motion to exclude all witnesses except the parties from the hearing room and set a December 2013 hearing on whether a moderate/severe special day class denied Student FAPE in the least restrictive environment.
- Order on Motions to Admit/Exclude Transcript Excerpts as EvidenceOAH admitted some of Student's IEP-meeting transcript excerpts as rebuttal evidence and excluded others. Excluded excerpts were multi-layered hearsay, irrelevant, not true rebuttal, or unnecessarily duplicative.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH set four FAPE issues for a December 2013 hearing. It relieved the District of producing four administrators Parent wanted to call because Parent gave no sufficient offer of proof of their relevance.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let two of Student's witnesses testify by phone but denied phone testimony for an audiologist without a showing she could not appear. It also set issues and support-person rules for a consolidated hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH granted Student's motion to have expert Peter Leone, Ph.D., testify by telephone and set FAPE and child-find claims against the county probation department for a November 2013 hearing at Probation's offices.
- Order Re: (1) Submission of Transcript Excerpts, (2) Submission Schedule and (3) Closing BriefsOAH let Student submit post-hearing excerpts of an IEP meeting transcript as rebuttal evidence to possibly impeach a teacher, over District's objections. District may still file objections and counter-excerpts.
- Order Granting Telephonic Testimony or in the Alternative Testimony via SkypeOAH let four of Student's out-of-area witnesses testify by phone or Skype over District's objection, citing their distance from the Eureka hearing, on condition that each witness receives all parties' exhibit binders.
- (Corrected) Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student's expert Dr. Peter Leone testify by phone but denied phone testimony for the educational rights holder because Student did not show good cause. The order also set the hearing and issues against Probation.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student's expert testify by phone but denied phone testimony for the educational rights holder for lack of good cause, and set issues against Probation for a hearing starting October 28, 2013.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH let Student's expert, Dr. Peter Leone, testify by phone but denied phone testimony for the education rights holder because Student did not show good cause.
- Order Denying Student's Request to Exclude District Witnesses Prior to Prehearing Conference and Denying Request for Spanish Speaking ALJOAH denied Parent's early request to exclude District witnesses and documents tied to Student's 2012 IEP, calling it premature, and denied a request for a Spanish-speaking ALJ because hearings must be held in English.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing Conference of October 11, 2013OAH overruled District's objection to Student's late-served evidence because the District already had everything except receipts, and let a distant witness testify by phone over the District's objection.
- Order Granting Motion to Allow Telephonic Testimony and Denying Motions to Exclude Evidence or Continue the Due Process HearingOAH let a District witness testify by phone but refused to exclude all of Student's evidence or continue the hearing, ruling exclusion must be decided document by document at hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH barred Student from calling the District's attorney as a witness because the District is entitled to keep its counsel and Father could testify to the same correspondence himself.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH excluded District witnesses from the hearing except while testifying, but allowed District a designated representative and denied Student's requests to tape record and to require a non-testifying designee.
- Order Denying Motion to Reopen Evidentiary RecordOAH refused to reopen the closed hearing record to admit Student's 2010 and 2011 IEPs. Student showed no good cause for failing to disclose them before or during the hearing, and they were only of historical value.
- Order Permitting Substitution of Expert WitnessOAH let Student substitute a new expert witness for the bifurcated hearing on the Probation Department's status as a responsible agency, because neither agency objected and the change came more than five days before hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference for Expedited HearingOAH let Student's out-of-town expert testify by phone over District's objection, citing Parents' inability to pay travel costs, and moved the expedited hearing to a District site away from campus to protect confidentiality.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing Conference of August 5, 2013OAH limited Student to the District's exhibits and to Father's own testimony plus cross-examination, because Student's prehearing statement left out exhibit and witness lists in violation of earlier OAH orders.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied as premature Student's request to bar District from calling him as a witness, because District had only listed him and not subpoenaed him, but ordered protective steps given his disability.
- Order for Submission of Additional EvidenceOAH deferred ruling on District's statute-of-limitations motion to dismiss. It ordered both sides to submit authenticated fax records showing whether Student's complaint was actually filed on May 17, 2013.
- Order Denying Request to Exclude Evidence; Granting Request for Continuance and Setting Hearing; Denying Request to Change Hearing LocationOAH refused to bar Student's late-served exhibits because Student acted in good faith. It instead granted the District a short continuance so it could review the evidence.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH denied Student's request to have seven doctors testify by telephone because Student offered no facts showing good cause, and set a two-day consolidated hearing on home/hospital services and the District's February 2013 IEP.
- Order Directing the Parties Jointly Submit the Settlement Agreement Dated September 2011 to Augment the RecordOAH ordered the parties to jointly file a signed, legible copy of their September 2011 settlement agreement by June 14, 2013, because it may bear on District's pending motion to dismiss.
- Order Re ExhibitsOAH marked District's private recording of testimony lost to an OAH recorder malfunction as Exhibit D-99 but did not admit or transcribe it, because the parties' recordings are not an official record.
- Order Following Continued Prehearing ConferenceOAH declined to exclude Parent's witnesses in advance. The hearing ALJ decides who testifies, and Aspire must make its employees and contracted staff available without subpoenas or witness fees.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH granted District's motion to remove its two attorneys from Student's witness list, finding they were not appropriate witnesses on the issues, and set issues and dates for the consolidated hearing.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH granted Student's motion to let witnesses from Utah testify by telephone and set four issues on placement, least restrictive environment, triennial assessment, and the District's IEP offer for a May 2013 hearing.
- Order Following Expedited Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied the District's and Student's motions to exclude each other's witnesses and denied Student's request for telephonic testimony, leaving objections to be renewed at the expedited hearing.
- Order Denying Motion to Limit Student's EvidenceOAH denied District's motion to bar Student's emotional-harm evidence. Collateral estoppel did not apply because the prior case decided a different issue (placement, not assessment), and that decision was still on appeal.
- Order Granting Request for Official Notice of Exhibit 38OAH took official notice of the San Diego County Juvenile Court's competency evaluation protocol and admitted it as Exhibit 38, finding it a public record posted on the official California courts website.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH denied without prejudice the District's request for judicial notice of a prior OAH decision because Student has appealed it, and set the District's assessor-choice issues for a March 2013 hearing.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing Conference and Denying Student's Motion to Dismiss Districts' ComplaintOAH denied Student's motion to dismiss the Districts' complaint as moot because special education law has no summary judgment procedure. It also refused to add a late California School for the Deaf referral issue.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference Granting Continuance and Setting New DatesOAH granted District's request to move the hearing to consecutive March 2013 dates, framed the issues, overruled District's objection to Student's expert, and ruled that legal fees are outside OAH's jurisdiction.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Order Bifurcating the Hearing; Order Continuing the HearingsOAH split Student's case into separate hearings against the Sacramento and Riverside agencies, allowed Devereaux-Texas witnesses to testify by phone, and denied SCUSD's oral request to reconsider denial of its dismissal motion.
- Order Denying Motion to Preclude Testimony of WitnessOAH denied a public defender paralegal's motion to avoid testifying, finding she was a percipient witness at Student's IEP meetings, though confidential lawyer-client communications remain privileged.
- Order Following Prehearing ConferenceOAH partly granted District's motion to limit references to a preschool teacher accused of physical abuse. Parties must first get an advance ruling on an offer of proof before eliciting testimony about the teacher.
- Order Denying Student's Request to Permit Exchange of Exhibits on an Alternate Address of District's CounselOAH denied Parent's request to deliver Student's exhibit binder to the District law firm's San Diego office, because the address of record for District's counsel was the firm's Cerritos office.
- Order Following Prehearing Conference; Setting Additional Due Process Hearing Date and Denying Motion to Exclude WitnessesOAH denied both parties' motions to exclude each other's witnesses because their relevance arguments were unpersuasive. It framed the hearing issues on eligibility and Fusion Academy placement and set the hearing dates.
- Order Following Pre-Hearing ConferenceOAH denied, without prejudice, Student's request to have a key local expert testify by phone because Student offered no evidence that in-person testimony was impossible or impracticable.
- Order Granting District's Motion to Exclude WitnessesOAH excluded two newspaper-reporter witnesses on Student's list because Student never responded to the District's objection and so did not show they had personal knowledge or expert qualifications.
- Order Denying Motion to Redact Without PrejudiceOAH denied without prejudice Student's motion to redact a sibling's confidential information from District documents, finding the District had already redacted the information from what it filed.