Winkelman v. Parma City School District

Winkelman v. Parma City School District, 550 U.S. 516 (2007), is a civil suit under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act decided by the Supreme Court of the United States. Justice Kennedy held for the seven-justice majority that parents may file suit under IDEA pro se.[1] Justice Kennedy declined to reach the question whether parents may represent the interests of their children pro se, instead concluding that IDEA created a set of independently enforceable rights in parents.[2]

Winkelman v. Parma City School District
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued February 27, 2007 Decided May 21, 2007
Full case name	Jacob Winkelman, a Minor, By and Through His Parents and Legal Guardians, Jeff and Sandee Winkelman, et al., Petitioners v. Parma City School District
Citations	550 U.S. 516 (more) 127 S. Ct. 1994; 167 L. Ed. 2d 904; 2007 U.S. LEXIS 5902; 75 U.S.L.W. 4329; 20 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. S 287
Case history
Prior	Judgment for Defendants, N.D. Ohio; appeal dismissed, No. 05–3886, 6th Cir., Nov. 4, 2005; cert. granted, 549 U.S. ___ (2006)
Holding
Parents can file suits under IDEA pro se because they are vindicating parental rights, rather than simply enforcing the rights of their children. Sixth Circuit reversed and remanded.
Court membership
Chief Justice John Roberts Associate Justices John P. Stevens · Antonin Scalia Anthony Kennedy · David Souter Clarence Thomas · Ruth Bader Ginsburg Stephen Breyer · Samuel Alito
Case opinions
Majority	Kennedy, joined by Roberts, Stevens, Souter, Ginsburg, Breyer, Alito
Concur/dissent	Scalia, joined by Thomas
Laws applied
20 U.S.C. § 1400(d)(1)(A)