New opinions — IDEA statute of limitations and 1983 favorable termination

G.L. v. Ligonier Valley School Dist. — education & disability law — affirmance — Krause

Judge Cheryl Krause, confirmed to the Third Circuit just last summer, already looks like a rising star. Her first opinions —  this prisoner civil-rights opinion in Young, this bar reciprocity opinion in NAAMJP, and especially this bankruptcy-mootness concurrence in In re: ONE2ONE Communications  — have been powerhouse efforts. Clear, thorough, and strong: Supreme-Court-shortlist caliber work, I’m starting to believe.

Today, the Court issued the latest Krause opinion, and it’s another tour de force. The case arose under the Individuals With Disabilities Act, and the appeal centered on how the IDEA’s confusingly drafted statute-of-limitations discovery rule works. The plaintiffs here, the school district, and the federal Department of Education as amicus each took a different position. After a careful analysis (the slip opinion runs 52 pages) of this issue of first circuit impression, the court sided with the government, holding that due process complaints under the IDEA must be filed within two years after the reasonable discovery of an injury.

Joining Krause were McKee and Greenaway. Arguing counsel were Charles Jelley for the students and parent, Christina Lane for the district, and Jennifer Rosen Valverde (her name is misspelled in the slip op.) of the Rutgers law school Special Education Clinic for amici. The opinion thanked the organizations led by the Rutgers clinic for “their helpful perspective and excellent briefing and argument.”

 

Bronowicz v. Allegheny County — prisoner civil rights — partial reversal — Greenaway

In order to recover for wrongful imprisonment under 42 U.S.C. 1983, a former prisoner must show that his challenge  to his underlying was favorably terminated. Today, the Third Circuit held that a 1983 plaintiff satisfied the favorable termination requirement even though the prior order vacating his sentence did not expressly state that the sentence was illegal.

Joining Greenaway were Fisher and Jordan. Arguing counsel were Robert Owsiany for the former inmate, Virginia Scott for the County, and Caroline Liebenguth for three defendant probation officers.

1 thought on “New opinions — IDEA statute of limitations and 1983 favorable termination”

  1. Matthew Stiegler Post author

    On the topic of Judge Krause ascendant, one more thing: I bet it’s just a matter of time before a couple of her clerks land Scotus clerkships with Kennedy. (Assuming he remains on the Court more than another couple years.) Then, voila, she’ll be The Third Circuit Feeder Judge. Her reputation — and the talent level of her clerk applicant pool — will rise accordingly.

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