North Carolina Lawyers Weekly
Singletary v. Cumberland County Schools (Lawyers Weekly No. 15-02-0282, 20 pp.) (Louise Flanagan, J.) 5:12-cv-00744; E.D.N.C.
Holding: Pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a plaintiff must exhaust her administrative remedies before bringing suit in federal court. Although the Fourth Circuit has not addressed whether retaliation claims are exempt from the exhaustion requirements, other courts have addressed this question, answering in the negative. The court finds this position persuasive in light of the purposes of administrative review provided by the IDEA.
Due to plaintiff’s failure to exhaust administrative remedies, the court dismisses most of her claims for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Three issues remain for trial.
The state administrative law judge dismissed one of plaintiff’s claims without prejudice. A dismissal without prejudice is not exhaustion of administrative remedies; therefore, defendant’s motion to dismiss must also be granted as to this claim.
