Opinion ID: 3038349
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Whether Woodside Concerned Representation By

Text: an Attorney-Parent in Administrative Proceedings Only We do not find persuasive the Pardinis’ argument that Woodside does not govern this case because the attorney-parent in that case provided representation only in administrative proceedings whereas David Pardini represented the Pardinis in both administrative proceedings and this federal court case. We did not predicate our reasoning in Woodside leading us to conclude that the IDEA did not allow the attorney-parent to recover attorney’s fees in representing his minor child on that distinction. Rather, we reached our conclusion based on our observation that “attorney-parents are generally incapable of exercising sufficient independent judgment on behalf of their children to ensure that reason, rather than emotion will dictate the conduct of the litigation,’” and that granting attorney’s fees to them would frustrate the fee-shifting provision’s purpose of “encourag[ing] the effective prosecution of meritorious claims.” Woodside, 248 F.3d at 131 (quoting Doe, 165 F.3d at 263 (internal quotation marks omitted)). The Pardinis fail to offer any explanation for why our concerns in such cases do not apply if there is litigation beyond administrative proceedings. We therefore reject their argument in this respect.