Special Education

The statutory provisions of the IDEA are found at 20 U.S.C. §§ 1400-1482 (2006).  The United States Code can be accessed at no cost from the Cornell Legal Information Institute. 

Suggested search terms alone or in combination: special education, free appropriate public education, least restrictive environment, medical treatments, related services, private schools, tuition reimbursement, handicap, damages, discipline, EAHCA, IEP, Section 504, IDEA

Legislative history can be extraordinarily useful for determining the intent behind a law, whether you're trying to determine why the law was changed or what Congress meant by a specific phrase. Legislative history is typically found in documents created during the legislative process, including reports, hearings, records of debates, and different versions of the bill.

If just beginning your research, you might consider beginning with the following laws:

• Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, Pub. L. No. 94-142 (1975)
• Education of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1990, Pub. L. No. 101-476 (1990)
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments for 1997,  Pub. L. No. 105-17 (1997)
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, Pub. L. No. 108-446 (2004)

Code of Federal Regulations

The Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R) is the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the departments and agencies of the Federal Government. It is divided into 50 titles that represent broad areas subject to Federal regulation. The 50 subject matter titles contain one or more individual volumes, which are updated once each calendar year, on a staggered basis

Federal Register

The Federal Register (Fed. Reg.) is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents.

Regulatory Histories

Locating foreign primary law on a particular topic can be difficult. The best sources for information on how to research the law of a particular country are: