The Schoolyard Lawyer: Parents’ Right to an Independent Evaluation

Posted on April 20, 2015

Every time a school district conducts an uation of a child, the parents have the right to an independent uation. An independent uation is an uation done on the child outside of the school district. It gives the parents the opportunity to research credible doctors and uators who can conduct an uation...

The Schoolyard Lawyer: School Discipline for Students Not Yet Eligible for Special Education

Posted on November 30, 2011

When a regular education student violates the school handbook, the school can discipline that student according to the policies and procedures set forth in the handbook. When the discipline involves a special education student, however, the IDEA requires the school to follow certain additional procedures when disciplining that student. Those procedures are...

FERPA: The Federal Law of Student Records

Posted on November 16, 2011

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, is a Federal law that protects the privacy of students’ education records and access to those records, and applies to schools that receive federal financial assistance under the U.S. Department of Education, including elementary and secondary schools as well as postsecondary schools. FERPA prohibits...

Employee Misclassification: A Caution to All Employers

Posted on November 8, 2011

For those businesses that utilize independent contractors as part of their business model, employee misclassification has become a major issue. It is one that is taking on increasing importance within the United States, as well as here in Massachusetts. In Massachusetts, employers who are found to have misclassified their W-2...

The Schoolyard Lawyer: A Parent’s Guide to Hiring a Special Education Attorney

Posted on November 5, 2011

The Special Education process can be frustrating, time-consuming, and upsetting to many parents. When parents feel that they can no longer face the school district on their own, many choose to hire a Special Education attorney to help them. This is an extremely important decision because it involves one of the most...

The Schoolyard Lawyer: A Summary of Massachusetts Special Education Statistics at the BSEA

Posted on October 28, 2011

The Bureau of Special Education Appeals (BSEA) released its Special Education statistics for fiscal year 2011 (July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011). A summary of the statistics is as follows: The BSEA received 8,348 rejected IEPs, an increase of 473 over the past fiscal year.

The Schoolyard Lawyer: New Guidelines for Pediatricians Diagnosing Children with ADHD

Posted on October 27, 2011

The American Academy of Pediatrics recently released new guidelines for diagnosing and treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Instead of diagnosing the condition in children aged 6 – 12, as previously required, the new guidelines require pediatricians to diagnose children starting at age 4 up to age 18. If...

The Schoolyard Lawyer: Recent Special Education Statistics in Massachusetts

Posted on October 25, 2011

In the 1980’s, doctors could only save 1 in 10 babies born weighing 2 pounds or less. Today, doctors can save 9 in 10 babies. 25% of babies born at 25 weeks or fewer may be severely disabled. 50% will have problems with...

The Schoolyard Lawyer: Standard of Proof in School Suspension/Expulsion Hearings

Posted on October 19, 2011

When a student is suspended or expelled from school, there are certain procedures that the school must follow in order to protect the student’s due process rights. The student will be allowed to have a suspension/expulsion hearing (in most circumstances) where he/she has a right to be represented by counsel, can present...

The Schoolyard Lawyer: Special Education Students and the Bullying Law

Posted on October 11, 2011

The Massachusetts Anti-Bullying law offers additional protections for students with disabilities because they are more susceptible to being “targets” of bullying. The law has two requirements for students with disabilities, both of which must occur simultaneously: (1) there must be school-wide response to prevent the bullying of students with disabilities; and (2) the student’s...

The Schoolyard Lawyer: An App Meant to Prevent Bullying

Posted on October 3, 2011

Cyber-bullying not only happens on the internet through social media websites or chat rooms, but it also happens through cell phones, either in the form of text messages or phone calls. There is now an App meant to protect children from cyber-bullying through text messages. Word Bully filters out...

Attorney Andra Hutchins Will Speak on Student Privacy Issues October 4, 2011

Posted on September 29, 2011

Coren Lichtenstein, LLP’s partner Andra Hutchins will speak on student privacy issues at an upcoming seminar put on by the National Business Institute. Attorney Hutchins will join two other local education law attorneys to discuss hot topic issues regarding student privacy in schools. The seminar will be held on...