No. 25-1051

Derek S., Individually and as Guardian Ad Litem of His Minor Child, J. S., et ux. v. Ballston Spa Central School District, et al.

Lower Court: Second Circuit
Docketed: 2026-03-05
Status: Pending
Type: Paid
Tags: administrative-exhaustion Americans-with-Disabilities-Act applied-behavior-analysis IDEA-exhaustion-requirement Section-504-Rehabilitation-Act special-education
Latest Conference: N/A
Question Presented (from Petition)

In Fry v Napoleon , 580 U.S. 154 (2017) this Court stated that the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA) exhaustion requirement does not apply to claims under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (Title II of the ADA) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504) requesting accommodation or changes to a special education program merely because the claim could relate in some way to education.

The Ninth and Fourth Circuits found that claims under Title II of the ADA and Section 504 for the provision of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) services to students with autism in school are not claims for educational services and not subject to the IDEA administrative exhaustion requirement. The Second Circuit found that claims under the ADA and Section 504 for the provision of ABA in school are claims for educational services that are subject to the IDEA exhaustion requirement.

Whether claims under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act for the provision of ABA therapy to students with autism in school are standalone claims of discrimination not subject to the IDEA exhaustion requirement, as the Ninth and Fourth circuits held, applying Fry v. Napoleon , 580 U.S. 154 (2017), or are they claims for educational services that are subject to the IDEA exhaustion requirement, as the Second Circuit held.

Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether claims under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act for the provision of ABA therapy to students with autism in school are standalone claims of discrimination not subject to the IDEA exhaustion requirement, or are claims for educational services subject to the IDEA exhaustion requirement

Docket Entries

2026-04-06
Brief of Ballston Spa Cent. Sch. Dis., et al. in opposition submitted.
2026-03-03
Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due April 6, 2026)

Attorneys

Ballston Spa Cent. Sch. Dis., et al.
Scott P. QuesnelGirvin and Ferlazzo, P.C., Respondent
Derek S., et al.
Carlo Camurati De OliveiraCooper Erving & Savage, LLP, Petitioner