Opinion ID: 523168
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: EPISD's Request for Sanctions

Text: 58 EPISD requests that we sanction Daniel's parents and his counsel for bringing a frivolous appeal, a course we decline to take. See Fed.R.App.P. 38. EPISD alleges that Mr. and Mrs. R. brought this appeal and engaged in delay tactics for one purpose: to keep Daniel in the Pre-kindergarten program for as long as possible. 11 Furthermore, EPISD asserts, the record does not contain any evidence that would support Mr. and Mrs. R.'s position. We cannot agree that Mr. and Mrs. R., or their attorney, deserve sanctions. The record does not indicate that Mr. and Mrs. R. exercised their right to appellate review for improper purposes. Absent any evidence, we refuse to attribute an improper motive to a parent seeking to provide for his child. Moreover, our circuit had not yet considered the issue presented in this case when Mr. and Mrs. R. brought their appeal. Finally, as the district court explained when it rejected EPISD's request for Rule 11 sanctions, Mr. and Mrs. R. and their counsel were strong advocates of a position they held in good faith arguing for an extension of the presumption contained in the EHA for mainstreaming handicapped youth[s] to the case at bar. We decline to sanction them.