More parents turn to lawyers in school disputes

Parents are increasingly turning to lawyers to resolve conflicts with their child's school. Lawyers and legal aid insurers are seeing more and more cases of parents who blame teachers for their children's bad grades or think that schools are not doing enough to prevent bullying. Stichting Achmea Rechtsbijstand (SAR) has seen the number of these cases increase by 140 percent in the past four years, AD reports. Last year the association handled 720 of these requests. SAR lawyer Rob Scholten told the AD that the increasing number of cases is concerning. "Parents want the best for their child and are quick to respond emotionally. But legal proceedings are usually not in the best interest of the child." he said. "You see that schools kick in their heels if legal aid comes in. They see it as an attack on their own performance." SAR tries to stay out of conflicts between parents and schools and mostly offers only advice. In principle, the parents would then approach the schools themselves and try to resolve the conflict. A lawyer will only intervene if the parent has absolutely no success. Most of the cases ultimately don't end up in court.