This book was developed to give administrators, teachers, other school staff, and parents a better understanding of the myriad court decisions that have shaped the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The book is divided into eight chapters, seven of which provide commentaries on and summaries of court decisions on the most important aspects of the law. Each chapter begins with a brief introduction and commentary that outlines noteworthy sections of the law and explains how the statutory provisions have been interpreted by the courts. The commentaries are followed by summaries of selected typical court decisions. Inasmuch as over 3,500 court decisions have been published since 1975, summaries of all court decisions affecting special education could not be included. Those included in this book represent a very small selection of the body of published court opinions. Cases selected include those that were precedent-setting along with many that provide typical examples of how courts interpret various aspects of the law and apply it to real-life factual situations. The selection of case summaries is not intended to be comprehensive, but rather, to provide readers with a better understanding of the law itself, how courts interpret its provisions, and how it must be implemented. The intent of these summaries is to give readers examples of the types of issues typically decided by the courts.In the same way that the case summaries in each chapter are not intended to be comprehensive, the book itself is not intended to be a comprehensive text on special education law. Rather, it is envisioned as an introduction to and general overview of a complex topic.