What Are Manifestation Determination Meetings?
Manifestation determination meetings are official proceedings in which a child’s behavior is reviewed in the context of their disabilities. These are held when a child faces suspension or expulsion for behavior. However, you deserve to have a representative with you who will look after your child’s rights.
At Augustin Egelsee, LLP, we have represented many special education students who have been suspended or expelled due to behavior that was caused by their disability, including but not limited to anxiety, ADHD, bipolar disorder and depression. We understand the stress you’re under and are ready to get involved and advocate for your child. You should remain armed with one important piece of information: a disability cannot be the basis for expulsion.
Parents’ MDR Preparation Checklist: What To Bring And Why
Preparing for a manifestation determination meeting can feel overwhelming, especially when emotions are high and timelines are short. Schools often arrive with prepared narratives and documentation, so parents benefit from entering the meeting equally prepared. The goal is to show that the behavior in question was a known and documented manifestation of the child’s disability, not an isolated or unexpected incident.
The most effective preparation focuses on records that establish a clear connection between the child’s disability and the conduct at issue. Key materials to gather include:
- Private medical or psychological evaluations: Reports from treating physicians, psychologists or psychiatrists can be critical. These evaluations often describe how conditions such as ADHD, anxiety or mood disorders affect behavior, impulse control or emotional regulation. Independent evaluations carry significant weight because they come from professionals outside the school district.
- Past teacher emails and correspondence: Written communication from teachers noting behavioral struggles, classroom accommodations or concerns helps demonstrate that the behavior was previously observed and documented. Emails showing repeated issues are especially helpful in countering claims that the incident was unexpected.
- The current IEP and prior versions: Bring the most recent IEP along with older versions to show patterns over time. This allows parents to point to goals, accommodations or behavior plans that relate directly to the conduct being reviewed.
- Behavior intervention plans or discipline records: If the school previously implemented behavior supports or issued discipline for similar conduct, those records can establish that the behavior was ongoing and known.
- Parent notes and timelines: Parents should prepare a brief written timeline describing when behaviors first appeared, how they escalated and what interventions were attempted. This helps keep the discussion focused and organized.
Parents also commonly ask whether it is acceptable to bring documents the school does not already have. The answer is yes. MDR meetings are not limited to school-generated records. Federal and state law require the team to consider all relevant information, including materials provided by parents.
Another frequent concern involves how much detail to share. Parents are not required to argue every point. Clear, targeted documentation that ties behavior directly to the disability is often more effective than broad explanations.
Entering an MDR with a structured checklist helps parents participate confidently and prevents critical information from being overlooked. Proper preparation can significantly influence how the team evaluates the connection between disability and conduct.
A Child Cannot Be Expelled For A Disability
An expulsion hearing must be held within 30 school days after the date the principal or the superintendent of schools determines that the pupil has committed any of the acts that violate the California Education Code. A child is entitled to request one postponement of the expulsion hearing, but that postponement cannot last more than 30 days. Within 10 days of the conclusion of that hearing, the school board must decide whether to expel the child, unless the child requests in writing that the decision be postponed.
The above circumstances are in the case of a general education student only. When a child is receiving special education services, an additional step is added into the process described above: That step is called a manifestation determination.
If you are going to a manifestation determination meeting or your child has been suspended or expelled, contact us, the Orange County special education attorneys at Augustin Egelsee, LLP, as soon as possible. You and your child have rights you may not be aware of, and you may have a limited amount of time to address this situation.
California Expulsion Attorneys
When a special education student is found to have violated the California Education Code, a school district is required to set up an Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting, which is to serve as a manifestation determination. A school district is also required to provide a special education student with a manifestation determination when that student has been suspended for 10 or more school days within a single school year, as that is considered a change of placement.
A school district must conduct a manifestation determination within 10 school days of a decision to change the placement of a pupil with a disability due to a violation of the code of student conduct. The manifestation determination team must consist of a school district representative, the parents, and relevant members of the IEP team as determined by the parent and the school district.
Once this team has been assembled, the team must review all relevant information in the file of the child, including the IEP, any observations of teachers, and any relevant information from the parents, to determine if the child’s conduct was caused by, or had a direct and substantial relationship to, the child’s disability, or if the child’s conduct was the direct result of the district’s failure to implement the IEP.
If the team decides that either of the two factors applies, then the conduct must be determined to be a manifestation of the child’s disability. If it is determined to be a manifestation, a child cannot be expelled, and the school district is required to conduct a functional behavior assessment of that child in order to provide further behavior interventions in the area related to the underlying incident. If the team determines that the child’s conduct was not a manifestation of his or her disability, the district may apply to the disabled child the same disciplinary procedures, in the same manner and for the same duration, as would be applied to a general education student.
Assistance For Manifestation Determination Meetings
It is very important that you understand the manifestation determination process. We are Danielle Augustin and Edwin Egelsee, the attorneys at Augustin Egelsee, LLP. We are committed to providing legal advice to our clients and consider every child’s case to be unique. Special education law is complex; you may have many more questions that have not been addressed here. Please contact Augustin Egelsee, LLP, through our online intake form or by calling 714-602-1498