When can public schools regulate students' off-campus speech? Laura Raphael and David Berney published an article in the Legal Intelligencer exploring the Supreme Court's recent decision in Mahanoy v. B.L., 594 U.S. ___ (2021). The Court in Mahanoy balanced students’ First Amendments rights and schools’ need to maintain order in their classrooms and held [...]
Parents of children with special needs, and their attorneys, are often baffled by the poor quality of public educational evaluations. And those evaluations are key to setting the services that a child with special needs will receive in school, known as the child's individualized education program (IEP). In the latest issue of the Legal Intelligencer, [...]
Attorney Heather J. Hulit published an article in the Legal Intelligencer arguing that there is a dual problem with the identification of minority students for special education under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Policymakers have long recognized that minority students are inappropriately over-represented in special education, a problem known as "disproportionality" that the [...]
For Immediate Release: September 22, 2020 Contact: David Berney; Berney & Sang; 215.564.1030; djberney@berneylaw.com Pennsylvania Supreme Court vindicates children’s rights Holds that bullying victims have until 6 months after their 18th birthday to bring discrimination claims under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act. Philadelphia, PA.: Last week, in a long-awaited decision, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that bullying victims [...]
Parents of children with disabilities and their advocates pushed Secretary DeVos to maintain IDEA obligations for states during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yesterday, we won. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, enacted March 27, 2020, gave the Secretary 30 days to issue a report to Congress with her “recommendations on any additional waivers [...]
Associate attorney Heather J. Hulit published an article in the Legal Intelligencer arguing that the way schools distribute compensatory education is rife with delays and unexpected denials. In addition to the negative impact this has on children, it limits the capacity of special education litigation to deter schools from violating students’ rights. She argues that [...]
[Note: This page was current as of April 2020--Please visit the Philadelphia School District's website for current information.] During this unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, our public schools need to show creativity and perseverance to minimize disruptions to learning. This is especially true for the most vulnerable students, including students with special needs, who stand to lose [...]
When a child faces discrimination, does the child’s right to sue depend on whether a parent takes prompt action, or may the child wait until adulthood and sue then? On March 10, 2020, in oral arguments before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Dave Berney, Esq., argued that the limitations period must stop for minors facing discrimination [...]
This week, associate attorney Robin Lipp published an article in the Legal Intelligencer surveying distressing signs in Philadelphia’s public schools. The article concludes that Philadelphia needs more state funds to address its basic problems, and that an ongoing lawsuit under the Pennsylvania Constitution will clarify the state’s legal obligation to provide adequate and equitable funding. [...]
If your child receives special education services, she is protected by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The IDEA is a federal law that was passed in 1975 “to ensure that all children with disabilities have available to them a free appropriate public education that emphasizes special education and related services designed to meet [...]
