Due Process Hearing

Under the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a due process provides two disagreeing parties (parents and the school district) a proper venue to resolve disputes. In resolving disputes, the parties may go to mediation before proceeding to a due process hearing, with an appeal to state or federal court. Due process is intended to ensure that children with learning disabilities and other types of disabilities are provided with a free appropriate public education (FAPE) (Logsdon, 2014). It is a formal court-like hearing procedure before an impartial hearing officer or administrative law judge (or panel of judges) who is not an employee of the state educational agency or school district but is neutral and knowledgeable about the

In a joint publication of The Advocacy Institute and The Children’s Law Clinic of the Duke University School of Law (2009), written complaint is advised to be filed within two years of the matter in dispute, unless the state has set a different limit. The complaint is filed by a parent or a school district involving any matter relating to the identification, evaluation, educational placement or provision of FAPE to a student with a disability. The Office for the Dispute Resolution (2012) requires that Due Process Complaint must contain at a minimum, the following information:

1. The name of the child, the address where the child lives, and the name of the school the child is attending;

2. If the child is homeless, available contact information for the child, and the name of the school the child is attending;

3. A description of the nature of the problem, including facts relating to such problem; and

4. A proposed resolution of the problem to the extent known and available to the party filing the

Put together all the IEPs, academic reports, letters, requests, complaints, evaluations and all the pertinent paperwork related to the case. This provides a paper trail and may serve as evidence on statements that you might disagreed upon during the hearing and would make the side of your story more believable given that you can show evidence on your claims. This may prove important as well, given that generally the “burden of proof” always lies on the party who filed for the due