Ability Law Blog
Author: Randy Chapman, Esq.
Randy Chapman has been the director of legal services at Disability Law Colorado since 1980. He played a pivotal role in the development of disability law and helped break ground in implementing special education law.
He has authored multiple publications about special education law, and overseen legal representation to more than 25,000 people with disabilities in Colorado.
Moving On: The IDEA and Summary of Performance for Students...
Jun 9 2008
Generally, the IDEA requires that once a school district determines that a student has a disability, the district must reevaluate (34 CFR 300.305) the student before the school district determines... Colorado DDD Proposes Two Step Plan: Change State Rules to...
Jun 3 2008
Readers: I usually try to focus my posts on issues that are of interest nationally, rather than only in my home state of Colorado. This posting, however, focuses on an important Colorado issue... The Second Edition of The Everyday Guide to Special...
May 30 2008
Readers as you may be aware, this blog features links for those interested in purchasing my book The Everyday Guide to Special Education Law. I have not, however, directly promoted the book in my... Keeping it on the down low: The IDEA, School Records, and...
May 14 2008
A child’s educational records often contain private personal information about the child and the family. In the course of determining a child’s eligibility for special education services and... H. R. 4188 The IDEA Fairness Restoration Act: Allowing...
Apr 24 2008
In 2006 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Arlington Central School District Board of Education v. Murphy that parents who prevail in an IDEA case cannot recover the costs of expert witnesses as... Using the State Education Agency Complaint Process to...
Apr 14 2008
In a recent series of articles I covered resolving disputes under the IDEA through mediation, the resolution process, and due process hearings. Special Education Services in the Summer: The IDEA and...
Apr 2 2008
Summer is rapidly approaching. For most children summer means time off from school. But for some students with disabilities, interrupting their school program during the summer break,... Protection from Retaliation
Mar 19 2008
Sometimes individuals are intimidated or harassed because they are trying to enforce or help others to enforce the right to be free from disability based discrimination under Section 504 and ... What if we don’t work it out? Due Process Hearings Under...
Mar 7 2008
Sometimes mediation, the resolution session, or other efforts do not resolve the dispute and parents or the school district still wish to have a due process hearing. We Can Work it Out Part III: Using the Resolution Process...
Feb 25 2008
As yet another way to resolve disputes before a due process hearing, the IDEA 2004 added a resolution process. Once a due process complaint notice is filed, the school district is required to... 