The Supreme Court Weighs in Again on School Liability Under Section 504 and the ADA Related to Education for Students with Disabilities

Kendra Yoch,

June 12, 2025

in: Hearings/Decisions, Supreme Court

Two years ago, when the Supreme Court decided Perez v. Sturgis Public Schools, which allows students to sue districts for money damages under Section 504 and the ADA without first exhausting the IDEA administrative procedures, we suggested that the decision might not open the floodgates to significant new liability, because the standard for students to prove discrimination under Section 504 and the ADA is higher than a simple denial of FAPE. The question of how much higher was before the Supreme Court in AJT v. Osseo Area Schools. 

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The Supreme Court Finds IDEA Exhaustion Not Required When Parents Seek Money Damages Under ADA and Section 504

Kendra Yoch,

March 22, 2023

in: Hearings/Decisions, Supreme Court, Uncategorized

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court held today that plaintiffs may file federal lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 seeking money damages without first exhausting the IDEA administrative procedures, even when the underlying dispute is the student’s special education programming. As we previewed in a post following the oral argument, this decision is a departure from current Fifth Circuit law and opens the door to parents filing federal lawsuits seeking monetary relief in special education disputes without filing for due process under the IDEA. As explained below, whether this path is truly advantageous for parents is uncertain.

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The Supreme Court Reconsiders the IDEA Exhaustion Doctrine

Chris Gilbert,

January 24, 2023

in: Supreme Court

On Wednesday, January 18, 2023, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Perez v. Sturgis Public Schools, a case out of Michigan (Sixth Circuit) involving the administrative exhaustion doctrine under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”)  Before the Court were two important issues: (1) whether parents can avoid having to exhaust their administrative remedies under the IDEA (by filing for and litigating a due process hearing) by asking for monetary damages in a lawsuit brought under a different statute (such as Section 504 or the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”)); and (2) whether settling a due process hearing constitutes “exhaustion” of the administrative process, such that parents who have settled with the school could then file a subsequent Section 504 or ADA lawsuit.  Some of these issues – particularly whether asking for monetary damages essentially negates the exhaustion requirement – were left over from the Court’s previous exhaustion decision in Fry v. Napoleon Community Schools.

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