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Tool 97: Finding Counsel in Your State: COPAA, Parent Centers, and the Questions to Ask Before You Hire

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THE RULE

Congress built a parent-support system into this area of law, and most parents never learn it exists. Every state has at least one federally funded Parent Training and Information Center (20 U.S.C. § 1471). Every state has a protection and advocacy organization with federal authority to represent people with disabilities (42 U.S.C. § 15043).

And if you ask, or if either side files a due process complaint, the district must tell you about free or low-cost legal services available in your area (34 C.F.R. § 300.507(b)). You are allowed to make them give you that list.

WHY IT MATTERS

Special education is a narrow specialty. A skilled general-practice lawyer may never have read the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). If so, that lawyer will not know the 10-day discipline tripwire, the stay-put rule, or the offer-of-settlement trap in Tool 96 - and will learn them at your child’s expense.

The wrong hire costs money and, worse, costs months of a school year that does not come back. Thirty minutes of structured interviewing can prevent most bad hires.