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Legal Specialties for Children and Adults with Disabilities and Their Families

Click on any of the substantive legal specialties below to learn more.

Publications and other resource material for families and professionals.

Robert H. Farley, Jr. writes and publishes on disability and disability law regularly. Below is a sampling of currently available articles and publications.

Click here to view more on our main publications page.

Publications and articles are available for reprint by not-for-profit agencies and parents groups; please see reprint requirements on our publications page.

Workshops, Seminars and Presentations

Robert H. Farley, Jr. is available to speak to parents groups, organizations, and agencies on a wide variety of issues related to disability advocacy and disability services. Popular topics include:

  • Adult Services for Developmentally Disabled Persons
  • Waiting List for Services: Fact or Fiction

Click here to visit our main workshops page.

video snaphot of Mr. Farley speaking

Click here to view video of Mr. Farley's presentation, Obtaining Funding or Services for Children & Adults with DD in the State of Illinois.

Special Education: Understanding the Process

After a child is initially evaluated — usually within 45 days after a request — and qualifies as a child with a disability, a written Individualized Education Program (IEP) is developed by the IEP team, which will include, among others, the parents of the child with a disability, the regular and special education teachers, and a representative from the school district or special education department. The parents have an active role in this process and, under the law, are considered equal partners with school personnel in making decisions.

The IEP will address:

  1. the child's present levels of educational performance;
  2. measurable annual goals, including benchmarks or short-term objectives;
  3. special education and related services, and supplementary aids and services needed to advance toward annual goals;
  4. to what extent, if any, the child will not participate with non disabled children in the regular class;
  5. the projected start date, frequency, location, and duration of services;
  6. how progress will be measured;
  7. how the child's parents will be kept informed; and,
  8. the extent to which that progress is sufficient to enable the child to achieve goals at year's end.

The IEP must be reviewed not less than annually to determine whether the annual goals are being achieved, but shall be revised during the school year if there is any lack of expected progress towards these goals.

If the parents and school personnel cannot reach a consensus, there are certain procedural rights where either the parent or school personnel can seek resolution of any disagreement by initiating an impartial due process hearing.

Click here for a glossary of special education terms and issues.