Ford

MEMORANDUM ***

Whitney Ford, a child with a disability, through and with her father Rodney Ford (“plaintiffs”) filed this action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”), 20 U.S.C. § 1400 , et. seq. The complaint alleges that defendants violated the IDEA and the U.S. Constitution by refusing to comply with an agreed upon individual education program (“IEP”) and seeking an injunction in state court reversing a stay-put order by the California Special Education Hearing Office (SEHO). The district court dismissed the complaint with prejudice because it found that it lacked jurisdiction over the complaint. We affirm in part, reverse in part and remand with instructions that the district court enter the dismissal of certain claims without prejudice.

The district court, with little explanation, dismissed each claim with prejudice because (1) it lacked subject matter jurisdiction under the “Rooker-Feldman doctrine” prohibiting federal courts from entertaining an appeal of a state court decision, District of Columbia Court of Appeals v. Feldman, 460 U.S. 462, 482-86 , 103 S.Ct. 1303 , 75 L.Ed.2d 206 (1983); Rooker v. Fidelity Trust Co., 263…