BRCSM attorney Jon Anderson was featured in a Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly article entitled: ‘De minimis’ IEP deviations not denial of student’s FAPE.
The August 2020 article focused on a ruling by a federal judge “that minor deviations in a special education student’s individualized educational plan did not amount to a denial of the “free appropriate public education” — or FAPE — guaranteed her by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.”
“The case illustrates the importance that school districts act in good faith in working with families with whom they have a dispute,” Anderson said. “Here, the court recognized that the district had a good plan and worked very hard to implement it under difficult circumstances.”
Another takeaway from the district’s perspective, he said, is the importance of documenting efforts to provide services consistent with a student’s IEP.
About Jon Anderson
Jon Anderson has close to three decades of varied experience with a focus on education, special education, antitrust, and tax law. He was recently was recognized by Rhode Island Monthly for Excellence in the law in the practice area of education law.
He is counsel to numerous public school districts, public charter schools and private schools in Rhode Island. He has represented them in highly sensitive matters in the public spotlight and appears regularly in state and federal courts and before the RI Department of Education. As a school lawyer, he handles matters under the Americans with Disabilities Acts, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. He has successfully represented school districts in special education placement disputes, controversies over healthcare obligations to employees, and governance matters.