Your child has a legal right to stay in their current special ed placement while disputes are resolved, and most parents don't know it exists.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN IN THIS PODCAST
- What "Stay-Put" rights are and how IDEA protects your child
- Exactly when Stay-Put is triggered and the 15-day filing window
- What "then-current placement" means and what it fully covers
- How Stay-Put affects courts, school budgets, and long disputes
- Disciplinary limits: weapons, drugs, IAES, and the 45-day rule
- How evolving case law is reshaping Stay-Put's boundaries
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Stay-Put rights freeze a child's educational placement, every service, support, and setting, the moment parents file for mediation or due process.
Schools cannot make unilateral changes while a dispute is pending, regardless of cost or preference. This protection is automatic; parents need not prove irreparable harm. Stay-Put applies to disciplinary proceedings as well, with narrow exceptions for weapons or serious injury.
Recent rulings from the 3rd, 6th, and 9th Circuits continue to refine its scope, including questions raised by family relocations, long school absences, and pandemic-era service changes.
Learn more about Stay-Put Rights by visiting:
https://kidlaw.org/2026/02/23/stay-put-rights/
Kidlaw Official Website - https://Kidlaw.org
