The Public Access Counselor (PAC) of the Illinois Attorney General’s office recently issued two binding opinions addressing the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Specifically, the opinions found two public entities violated FOIA by improperly applying for the “trade secrets” exemption […]
Category: Publications
Update: Application of New Tenure Rules Under PERA
As we discussed in an alert in December, with PERA’s full implementation on September 1, 2016, new tenure rules are in effect in Illinois. ISBE guidance suggests that for those districts with a PERA implementation date of September 1, 2016, the […]
The Evaluation Was Supposed to Happen When?! Timing of Special Ed Evaluations Over the Summer
Originally posted on our Special Education Law Insights Blog It’s a nightmare scenario: You come back to school rested after a well-deserved summer break to find a parent complaining that their child should have been evaluated over the summer and had an IEP […]
Key Lessons for School Officials and Other Public Employees from Recent Court Decision on Trump’s Twitter Account
As technology and social media continue to develop, so do legal questions surrounding their use by public entities and employees. On July 9, 2019, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Knight First Amendment Institute v. Trump decided that President Trump […]
On June 30, 2019, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed an executive order aimed at studying and providing recommendations on legal rights and supports in the school environment for transgender, non-binary and gender-nonconforming students. The executive order also requests that the Illinois […]
Originally posted on our Special Education Law Insights Blog Summer is upon us and so it’s the season for Extended School Year (ESY) services. What better time than now to brush up on the law in this area? Most special education school leaders […]
The Supreme Court closed out its current term this week, issuing decisions in two cases with important implications for public schools. In Kisor v. Wilkie, issued yesterday, a surprising majority of the Court (the liberal justices plus Chief Justice John G. Roberts, […]
Yesterday, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in Kisor v. Wilkie, a case seeking to overturn prior precedent requiring deference to federal agencies’ interpretations of their regulations. The case involved a challenge by a military veteran of the Department of […]