Manifestation Determination in New Hampshire: The Rule That Protects Your Child from Day One

Your child with an IEP got suspended for three days. The school did not schedule a manifestation determination review (MDR). If you relied on a generic special education guide to tell you your rights here, you may have just been told you have none. That guide is wrong for New Hampshire.

What Federal Law Says

Under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a school is required to hold a Manifestation Determination Review when a student with a disability is removed for more than 10 cumulative school days in a school year that constitute a pattern of exclusion. For shorter suspensions—say, 3 or 5 days—federal law does not mandate an MDR.

This is what most IEP books, national advocacy websites, and even some parent training centers will tell you. For most states, it's accurate.

What New Hampshire Law Actually Requires

New Hampshire goes significantly further. Based on binding case law from the New Hampshire Supreme Court (Petition of the State of New Hampshire, No. 2022-0124), an MDR is required for any suspension of a student with a documented disability, regardless of duration—even a single day.

This is not a technicality or a gray area. It is established state legal precedent that directly modifies how Ed 1113 and Ed 1124 (New Hampshire's discipline rules for students with disabilities) must be applied.

The practical implication: if your child holds an IEP or a formal disability diagnosis and is suspended for even one day, you have the right to demand a manifestation determination review before or immediately after that suspension is carried out. The school must convene the IEP team to determine whether the behavior that led to the suspension was caused by the child's disability or was a direct result of the school's failure to implement the IEP.

What the MDR Team Determines

The manifestation determination review is conducted by the IEP team (including you) within 10 school days of the decision to remove the student. The team reviews all relevant information in the student's file and must answer two questions:

Question 1: Was the conduct in question caused by, or did it have a direct and substantial relationship to, the child's disability?

Question 2: Was the conduct a direct result of the school district's failure to implement the IEP?

If the answer to either question is yes, the conduct is determined to be a manifestation of the disability. The school cannot move forward with suspension or expulsion under the normal disciplinary process. Instead:

• The team must conduct a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) if one has not already been conducted, and develop a Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) or review the existing one
• The student must be returned to their original placement unless you and the district agree to a change, or unless the placement itself was never appropriate
• Any placement change that results from disciplinary action must follow normal IEP placement procedures, including providing you with Written Prior Notice

If the Conduct Is Determined NOT to Be a Manifestation

If the team finds the behavior was not a manifestation of the disability, the school can apply the same disciplinary procedures it would apply to a student without a disability. However, even in this case, the student continues to receive a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) during any removal. Education services cannot simply stop because a student with a disability is suspended.

There are three "special circumstances" where a student can be removed to an Interim Alternative Educational Setting (IAES) for up to 45 school days regardless of whether the behavior was a manifestation: carrying a weapon, possessing or using illegal drugs, or causing serious bodily injury to another person. Even in these situations, FAPE continues in the IAES.

Why This Matters for NH Parents

Generic guides tell parents they have no rights during a short suspension. In New Hampshire, that is wrong. Parents who don't know about the state's expanded MDR requirement routinely let short suspensions pass without demanding the required review—and those suspensions accumulate into patterns that schools later use to justify longer removals or placement changes.

Every short suspension that does not trigger an MDR review is also a missed opportunity. The MDR process requires the team to examine whether the IEP is being properly implemented. If services are being missed, if the behavior plan is inadequate, or if the environment is contributing to the behavior, the MDR creates a formal record that the school is on notice of these failures.

What to Do When Your Child Is Suspended

1. Within 24 hours of notification, send a written request to the SAU's Special Education Director demanding a Manifestation Determination Review prior to or immediately upon the suspension
2. Cite New Hampshire's binding case precedent and Ed 1113/Ed 1124 obligations
3. Request copies of all behavioral documentation, incident reports, and existing BIP records before the MDR meeting
4. Attend the MDR meeting with documentation of your child's disability and any evidence that the behavior relates to their disability or to IEP implementation failures

Do not wait for the school to schedule the MDR automatically. Many NH SAUs are unaware of or choose to ignore the expanded state requirement. A written demand, timestamped and addressed to the Special Education Director, creates a legal record and forces the district to respond.

The New Hampshire IEP & 504 Blueprint covers the full New Hampshire discipline framework, including what to do when an MDR finding is disputed and how to challenge a placement change that results from disciplinary proceedings.

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