Washington › WAC 392-172A-05120
WAC 392-172A-05120
WAC 392-172A-05120 is cited in Washington's Notice of Special Education Procedural Safeguards for Students and Their Families (October 2023) under the heading "Attorneys’ Fees". What follows is the notice's own text under that heading, quoted verbatim from the captured source (tools/packets/washington-packet.txt), including the PDF text layer's line-wrap artifacts, which are reproduced rather than corrected. The notice cites the section as printed below. The section's own text, as the Washington State Legislature publishes it in Chapter 392-172A WAC, is not captured here and is listed on the state page as capture pending. All dates on this page are quoted from the source, not a deadline calculation performed for you.
As the notice states it
Heading, as printed: "Attorneys’ Fees"
Citation line, as printed: "34 CFR §300.517; WAC 392-172A-05120"
General
"If you prevail (win) in the civil action and are represented by an attorney, the court, in its discretion, may award reasonable attorneys’ fees as part of the costs to you. In any action or proceeding brought under Part B of IDEA, the court, in its discretion, may award reasonable attorneys’ fees as part of the costs to a prevailing school district or OSPI, to be paid by your attorney, if the attorney: (a) filed a complaint or court case that the court finds is frivolous, unreasonable, or without foundation; or (b) continued to litigate after the litigation clearly became frivolous, unreasonable, or without foundation; or In any action or proceeding brought under Part B of IDEA, the court, in its discretion, may award reasonable attorneys’ fees as part of the costs to a prevailing school district or OSPI, to be paid by you or your attorney, if your request for a due process hearing or later court case was presented for any improper purpose, such as to harass, to cause unnecessary delay, or to unnecessarily increase the cost of the action or proceeding."
Award of Fees
"Attorneys’ fees must be based on rates prevailing in the community in which the action or hearing arose for the kind and quality of services furnished. No bonus or multiplier may be used in calculating the fees awarded. Attorneys’ fees may not be awarded, and related costs may not be reimbursed in any action or proceeding under Part B of IDEA for services performed after a written offer of settlement to you if:"
"1. The offer is made within the time prescribed by Rule 68 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or, in the case of a due process hearing or state-level review, at any time more than 10 calendar days before the proceeding begins;"
"2. The offer is not accepted within 10 calendar days; and"
"3. The court or ALJ finds that the relief finally obtained by you is not more favorable to you than the offer of settlement. Despite these restrictions, the court may award of attorneys’ fees and related costs to you if you prevail and you were substantially justified in rejecting the settlement offer. Attorneys’ fees may not be awarded relating to any meeting of the IEP team unless the meeting is held as a result of an administrative proceeding or court action. A resolution meeting required under due process hearing procedures is not considered a meeting convened as a result of an administrative hearing or court action, and also is not considered an administrative hearing or court action for purposes of these attorneys’ fees provisions. The court may reduce, as appropriate, the amount of the attorneys’ fees awarded under Part B of IDEA, if the court finds that:"
"1. You, or your attorney, during the course of the action or proceeding, unreasonably delayed the final resolution of the dispute;"
"2. The amount of the attorneys’ fees otherwise authorized to be awarded unreasonably exceeds the hourly rate prevailing in the community for similar services by attorneys of reasonably similar skill, reputation, and experience;"
"3. The time spent and legal services furnished were excessive considering the nature of the action or proceeding; or"
"4. The attorney representing you did not provide to the district the appropriate information in the due process request notice as described under the heading Due Process Hearing Request. However, the court may not reduce fees if the court finds that the state or school district unreasonably delayed the final resolution of the action or proceeding or there was a violation under the Procedural Safeguards provisions of Part B of IDEA."
Discipline Procedures for Students Eligible for Special Education
"There are special education protections afforded to your child when he or she is disciplined. These protections are in addition to discipline procedures that apply to all students. These protections also apply to students who have not yet been found eligible for special education if the district should have known that the student would be eligible."
On this site
This record is one of 33 built from the sections Washington's notice cites by number. Washington's page assembles the routes, offices, parent centers, and stated timelines from the same notice, and lists every record under its source map.
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Source
Notice of Special Education Procedural Safeguards for Students and Their Families (PDF), ospi.k12.wa.us; October 2023; retrieved Sep 13, 2026.
Change log
Sep 29, 2026 · Record created. Built by tools/render-citations.py from tools/packets/washington-packet.txt (capture of Sep 13, 2026): one record per section number the notice prints in full as WAC 392-172A-nnnnn; a citation printed as a range makes one record keyed on its first number, titled with the range as printed; a section cited under two headings carries both. Text is quoted, not summarized. Reviewer: Carrie Schluter, reviewed 2026-09-29. Corrections on the record in this log: hello@fieldassembly.net.