Opinion ID: 777468
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: The Futility Exception to the Exhaustion Requirement

Text: 37 We recognize that the IDEA's exhaustion requirement does not apply in situations in which exhaustion would be futile because administrative procedures do not provide adequate remedies. Heldman v. Sobol, 962 F.2d 148, 158 (2d Cir. 1992); see also H.R.Rep. No. 99-296, at 7 (1985); Mrs. W. v. Tirozzi, 832 F.2d 748, 756 (2d Cir.1987). Polera argues that this futility exception applies to her claims for several reasons: according to her, it would have been pointless to seek administrative relief from the very entities that had failed to implement the clearly-stated requirements of the IEPs, the administrative process could not provide the relief that she sought, and, in any case, relief would not have been made available promptly. 8 But, as we discuss below, Polera's IEPs in fact did not clearly state the obligations of the school, and the administrative process could have provided appropriate and expeditious relief. 38 In arguing that the futility exception should apply in this case, Polera relies on the following statement of Senator Paul Simon, a co-sponsor of two of the acts that formed the foundation of the IDEA: It is important to note that there are certain situations in which it is not appropriate to require the exhaustion of [IDEA] administrative remedies before filing a civil law suit. These include complaints that ... an agency has failed to provide services specified in the child's individualized educational program. 131 Cong. Rec. § 10396-01 (1985); see also H.R. Rep. 99-296, at 7 (1985) (exhaustion not required where it would be futile to use the due process procedures (e.g., an agency has failed to provide services specified in the child's individualized educational program ...).). The District Court in this case, noting Senator Simon's views, excused exhaustion to the extent that Polera's claim was based on the district's failure to provide promised services. 39 Were we to accept Senator Simon's broad language without qualification, a plaintiff could plausibly frame any IEP-related claim as one of implementation and thereby sidestep the IDEA's exhaustion requirement. Under such an interpretation, the futility exception would swallow the exhaustion requirement. Moreover, the exhaustion requirement is predicated on Congress's belief, expressed through the statutory scheme, that administrative agencies can get it right: that the agencies themselves are in the optimal position to identify and correct their errors and to fine-tune the design of their programs. Sweeping exceptions to the exhaustion requirement are at odds with this belief. 40 Therefore, a court must closely examine a plaintiff's claims before concluding that they involve nothing more than implementation of services already spelled out in an IEP. Here, Polera's assertion that her claim relates solely to implementation does not make it so. A review of the record reveals that the Board's alleged failure to provide services is inextricably tied to the content of the IEPs and therefore is much more than a failure of implementation. Simply put, Polera's IEPs failed to spell out the services to be provided. The three relevant IEPs—those that the District Court found to have been violated by the Board — include long lists of abstract goals (for example, will successfully accomplish the required language arts skills necessary to complete the grade 12 curriculum) but are virtually silent as to what materials or services the school should provide. In order to identify those services (for example, to ascertain the content of a curriculum), we are left either to speculation or to reliance on extrinsic evidence, as illustrated by the opinion of the District Court. This is not the sort of case described by Senator Simon, in which a school has failed to implement services that were specified or otherwise clearly stated in an IEP. Polera's claim unavoidably encompasses both a failure to provide services and a significant underlying failure to specify what services were to be provided. 41 Polera also relies on the Sixth Circuit's decision in Covington v. Knox County School System, 205 F.3d 912 (6th Cir. 2000). In Covington, the mother of a disabled student sued the school district under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging constitutional violations of her son's rights but not raising IDEA claims. In her complaint, the plaintiff asserted that school officials had locked the student inside a small, dark, unheated, unventilated cell for long periods of time as a disciplinary measure. In considering the applicability of the IDEA exhaustion requirement, the court held that in the unique circumstances of this case — in which the injured child has already graduated from the special education school, his injuries are wholly in the past, and therefore money damages are the only remedy that can make him whole — proceeding through the state's administrative process would be futile and is not required before the plaintiff can file suit in federal court. Id. at 917. Despite certain similarities between Covington and the instant case — both Polera and the plaintiff in Covington had already graduated and complain of past, not ongoing, conduct — Polera's claim is distinguishable from the unique circumstances of Covington, which in any case is not binding on this Court. Although the Sixth Circuit focused on the fact that the plaintiff student had graduated, damages would have been the only adequate remedy even had he sought immediate relief at the time of the wrongdoing. Nothing could undo the harm that he had suffered. In contrast, had Polera pursued administrative procedures at the time of the alleged wrongdoing, she could have obtained the materials she needed and, perhaps, remedial tutoring or schedule adjustments to undo the effects of the wrong. For Polera, unlike the plaintiff in Covington, a fully effective remedy was available at the time; she simply chose not to pursue it. 42 The supposed slowness of the administrative process also does not justify a finding of futility in this case. Under New York State's regulations, a hearing officer must render a decision within 45 days of the receipt by the board of education of a parent's request for a hearing. See 8 N.Y.C.R.R. § 200.5(i)(4). In contrast, Polera's federal case is still pending, more than five years after she filed suit. While the administrative process might not have delivered relief as swiftly as Polera hoped, it certainly could have compensated for the relatively minor delay with additional remedial educational services. We also consider it incongruous that Polera waited years before pursuing any remedy, yet now claims that the remedy available to her at the time — the administrative process — would have been too slow. 43 Finally, we reiterate our holding that disabled-student plaintiffs, like Polera, should not be permitted to sit on live claims and spurn the administrative process that could provide the educational services they seek, then later sue for damages. Were we to condone such conduct, we would frustrate the IDEA's carefully crafted process for the prompt resolution of grievances through interaction between parents of disabled children and the agencies responsible for educating those children. The fact that the administrative process could not provide damages does not render Polera's claim futile; she could have obtained complete relief at the time, through changes to her IEPs, additional educational services, and, if necessary, remedial education. See Charlie F., 98 F.3d at 992 (relief available means relief for the events, condition, or consequences of which the person complains, not necessarily the kind of relief the complaint demands). 44 Because we find that the District Court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over Polera's claims, we need not address the Board's arguments challenging the District Court's finding of intentional discrimination and entry of judgment for Polera. Nor need we consider Polera's cross-appeal regarding the preclusion of her expert witnesses.