California Business Litigation Blog

A cell phone video depicts the scene of an eleven-year-old autistic boy being struck by a teacher. The child’s mother has filed a lawsuit against the Pittsburgh Public Schools because of the slap, and other allegations of assault on the boy.

The teacher, Lori Davis, was fired from her job by the school district because of the incident at Conroy School, located in Manchester. The video, posted on YouTube.com, is mentioned in the lawsuit. The lawsuit states that the teacher hit the child on the side of the head and then said, “Stop moving your chair back. Move it! And you stay back there! I’ve had it with you!”

One of the claims in the lawsuit is the school’s alleged poor background checking that allowed the teacher to be placed in the school.

The incident was not the first time that the boy was assaulted, according to a teacher’s aide named Andre Burrell. Burrell personally witnessed the teacher both verbally and physically abuse the child on multiple occasions before the March 14th video release in 2008. In addition, the child was also assaulted by a bus aide, who the school district also fired.

The teacher was fired in June of 2008, a full three months after the incident. The state also revoked the teacher’s teaching certificate after the incident was reported to them.

Experts in special education state that this is really the exception to the rule and that most special education teachers are in fact very good with students. Still, this incident could cause parents to step back and wonder what is happening with their own children both in the classroom and on the bus.

Posted by Richard Oppenheim | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Business Litigation   Education   Education Law   School District Law   School Lawsuit   Special Education

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A federal judge appointed the monitor who will oversee the Milwaukee Public Schools process of locating and compensating students who were denied special education services between 2000 and 2005. The process requires locating thousands of students, potentially. Elise T. Baach was appointed as independent monitor of the class action lawsuit.

In addition to the appointment, the judge, U.S. Magistrate Judge Aaron Goodstein, also provided documents on when the search for these individuals would be conducted. The schools must track down any student who missed being identified as eligible to receive special education services between that timeframe. Both current and former students would be sought.

The search and compensation is required after a court found that the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act, a federal law, was violated. That lawsuit, Jamie S. Vs. Milwaukee Public Schools was ruled on in the same court district.

Not only do the schools need to locate these students but they must also determine what is fair compensatory services to provide to those whose rights were violated. Notices must be posted starting September 1st, 2009 in all public schools in the district and must remain there until Jan 4th, 2010. Anyone who could have had their rights violated is encouraged to sign the class action lawsuit to receive the required compensatory requirements. Students who were suspended during for more than ten days in that period must also be identified, and the schools must determine which students could have qualified.

The original lawsuit claims that the school did not make required payments to allow the special education students to attend private schools for the services that the public schools could not provide. The school district has appealed the ruling.

Continue reading "Special Monitor Appointed For Milwaukee Public School Special Education Lawsuit" »

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Posted In: Business Litigation   Education   Education Law   School District Law   School Lawsuit   Special Education

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The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rendered an opinion clarifying what a plaintiff must show to establish a whistleblower claim under the Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX). In the opinion (HERE) by Judge Jay S. Bybee the Court found that plaintiffs did not have to "prove the existence of fraud before suggesting the need for an investigation." They only had to demonstrate they believed fraud had occurred to prompt the employer’s obligation to investigate.

This complicated story involves married intellectual property attorneys Shawn and Lena Van Asdale working for International Game Technology (IGT) as associate general counsel. One or both of them discovered documents which lead them to believe that an investigation into a patent held by Anchor Gaming should be started. Anchor was a former competitor of IGT before the 2 companies merged.

The slot machine patent in question was a major asset of Anchor and if not valid, could have fraudulently overvalued Anchor before the merger.

Shawn expressed concern to his bosses that an older Bally machine may have a valid patent which had not been disclosed before the merger. His belief was that IGT had been intentionally misled about Anchor's value. The Van Asdales both raised the issue again with IGT's general counsel (Anchor's former top lawyer), stating they believed the nondisclosure of the Bally machine was suspicious and there was a potential of fraud.

The Van Asdales were terminated within a short time following those meetings.

The couple sued, asserting a whistleblower claim under the SOX, contending they were terminated for reporting potential shareholder fraud in connection with the IGT / Anchor merger. The Nevada-based federal trial court sided with the employer and granted its summary judgment motion, finding the Van Asdales had not shown they had discussed the suspected fraud specifically enough with IGT before they were terminated.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed and reversed, vacated and remanded the trial court’s decision. While this decision may clarify what a plaintiff must do to establish a whistleblower claim, it may expand the use of privileged information by in house counsel, which was previously constrained under “attorney/client privilege”.

Continue reading "New Standard for Whistleblower Claims Determined by Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals" »

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Posted In: Business Litigation   Contract Litigation   Employment Law   Intellectual Property

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A lawsuit has been filed by the parents of a 5 year old autistic boy against the Columbia (Illinois) School District for forbidding their son’s service dog from accompanying the boy to classes. A Monroe County judge is expected to rule this week on whether the dog is allowed to attend class with the autistic child. The Monroe County Circuit Court Judge, Dennis Doyle, promised he would make a decision before the first day of class, August 24, 2009.

Five year old Carter Kalbfleisch was only 18 months old when diagnosed with Autism. Carter experiences acute outbursts, often eats inappropriate things like grass and rocks, and runs away from his parents and teachers.

Doctors at Cardinal Glennon Children's Medical Center recommended a specially trained service dog for Carter. The dog and training have cost the family about $10,000.

(Photo of Carter & Corbin courtesy of STLTODAY.COM)

Carter's parents have noticed many positive changes since working with Corbin, a one year old Bouvier. Carter bonded instantly with the dog and now has minimal outbursts while in public. The boy’s parents have even noticed Carter is interacting with people.

School officials did not provide a reason for banning Corbin, but rumors indicated there were concerns of other students with allergies and that there may be students who fear dogs. Carter’s parents acknowledged they would have argued the decision within the school, but a decision would have taken nine months.

Children and adults with disabilities often use service dogs like Corbin and such dogs are becoming increasingly popular with people with Autism. Studies show children and adults who suffer from autism relax and open up more easily when a service dog is near. People with autism are known to have severe emotional and sensory overload, which makes it harder for them to deal with everyday surroundings and social interactions.

United States federal law protects the rights of the disabled to use service dogs. Illinois law permits the use and presence of a service dog in school, which is the law the Kalbfeisches’ are depending on. The disability laws have plenty of gray area. For example, small companies can forbid service animals if they are too disruptive, and school environments are also subject to such interpretation.

Continue reading "Banning of Autistic Child’s Service Aid Dog Leads to Lawsuit Against School District " »

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Posted In: Business Litigation   Education   Education Law   School District Law   School Lawsuit

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In the city of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, a school district is suing a mother. The Bethlehem Area School District has filed suit against Diana Zhou. The school district alleges that the woman "deliberately abused special education laws" in an effort to encourage the school to send her child to a private school. The school states that the child was a "gifted" student.

The lawsuit is rare and was filed under a very specialized portion of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (I.D.E.A.). This federal law allows for school districts to try and recoup costs lost when legal actions had an "improper purpose." The school district is able to try and collect the costs of attorney fees from lawyers and from parents who push these improper claims. In this particular case, the school district has spent more than $100,000 on legal fees on the claims made by the woman.

The lawsuit stems around a series of incidents in which Ms. Zhou requested meetings to develop plans to be used to educate her two children. Each time, she refused the services that the school district offered to her. More than 20 hearings were held over a period of eight years. The hearings were designed to determine if the two children were getting appropriate services. In each of the hearings, the district won.

Under federal law, the school must provide specialized educational resources for children who are gifted, which both of Ms. Zhou's children tested as. The federal laws also provide that parents have the right to special hearings if they cannot agree on what the best plan for the child is. The lawsuit further states that the conflict worsened in the 2008 to 2009 school year. During that time, the lawsuit alleges Ms. Zhou told a mediator that she did not want to come to an agreement with the district regarding one of the child's education plans.

Posted by Richard Oppenheim | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Education   Education Law   School District Law   School Lawsuit

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A New York college is being sued because one of its graduate degree students has been unable to find a job. The student, Trina Thompson, states that the school, Monroe College, did not help her with job placement which ultimately has lead to her inability to find a job. She is seeking $70,000 to cover the costs of her tuition from the school and another $2000 as compensation for her stress in the job search.

This is just one example of what is happening around the country where jobs are scarce in many fields. Some college career centers no longer call themselves "job placement" centers or services, but rather offer more training on obtaining a job. Career counseling and linking students with potential employers is as far as they will go.

Is this what students expect when they go to a college in the hopes of finding a job? According to Johns Hopkins University's career office director, Mr. Mark Presnell, students do not expect a guaranteed job found for them by the school. He is quoted by the Baltimore Sun as saying, "I think our students understand that we're here to guide them through the different kinds of career choices they have. What we're here to do is to educate and empower students to build a foundation for the development of their careers."

Other schools state something similar, that their job is not so much to find the job for the student, but to give them an education and then train the student how to market themselves and their skills to employers.

Continue reading "Grad Student Sues School Because She Can't Find A Job" »

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In Jackson, Mississippi, a former high school cheerleader has filed a lawsuit against her former coach as well as the school district in a fight over Facebook. The lawsuit is to the tune of $100 million, which Mandi Jackson and her family filed based on the coach reading the student's personal emails.

Miss Jackson states that the coach got into her Facebook account and read personal messages from her to other students, some of which contained profanity. Because of reading the messages, the coach, Tommie Hill suspended Jackson from cheering. The student was not allowed to cheer at football games or pep rallies.

The student believes she had her personal privacy violated. Her mother, Missy Jackson states that the coach tried to take over her role. She claims it is up to her to police her child's Facebook account and handle disciplinary actions herself. The mother also states that she tried to work with the school for two years to resolve the situation to no avail.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court. Courtesy of WAPT it may be viewed HERE.

Mandi Jackson dreads going back to school as a junior this year because she says that the other girls on the cheerleading squad no longer socialize with her. Although she was once friends with many of them, they no longer talk to her after the incident.

The school, on the other hand, states that all cheerleaders were warned that the coaches would be monitoring their activity online on social networking websites. The school officials have also filed a motion requesting that the case be dismissed.

Posted by Richard Oppenheim | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Education   Education Law   School District Law   School Lawsuit

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School achievement tests, required under the country's No Child Left Behind Act, do not have to be provided in any language other than English, a state appeals court ruled. In Coachella Valley, California, where many of the student's are considered English language learners, this has severely limited the school's performance.

Coachella Valley Unified and other school districts alleging that students should be provided with achievement tests in other languages filed a lawsuit. The district is currently under state sanctions and an academic trustee for poor performance on these tests. The attorneys representing the school district state that the school is being treated unjustly since teachers are performing well.

The case appealed a ruling in 2007 by the San Francisco City and County Superior Court. In the case, nine school districts and bilingual education groups came together to sue the state of California over the English only tests. The lawsuit states that the state was failing to meet federal laws, which stipulate the English learners be tested in a method that is considered a "valid and reliable manner."

The school districts claim that even if the child understands the concept, they may be unable to demonstrate the answer since they cannot understand the question being posed to them.

The court's ruling (available HERE) was based on several factors including the court's unwillingness to not second guess the California State Board of Education. In addition, a state proposition that requires the majority of teaching to be done in English also was a factor. The ruling in the case was unanimous. The court stated that it would be confusing to teach in English and then to test in another language.

Federal law states only that reasonable accommodations are necessary to be made to accommodate students. The school districts have yet to determine if they will further pursue the case. They said that they will determine whether or not to move forward once the new administration in Washington D.C. determined how it would proceed with the No Child Left Behind Act.

Continue reading "Appeals Court Rules English is the Only Language for California School Achievement Tests" »

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Posted In: Education   Education Law   School District Law   School Lawsuit

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