As a result, such programs are forced to confront complex legal questions. This article outlines the legal frameworks in which the individual with HIV infection may be considered in developmental services. The legal definition of developmental services provided is consistent with that spelled out in the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Developmental Disabilities Act of 1978. Criteria include emergence by age 22, the tendency to be lifelong, and the limitation of three or more of the following major life activities: self care, receptive and expressive language, learning, mobility, self-direction, the capacity of independent living and/or economic self sufficiency. Some groups that fall within this definition include people with mental retardation, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, other related neurological conditions, and infants and adults with HIV-related diseases who meet the above mentioned criteria. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act is the most important mandate used in preventing discrimination in such instances, and a number of lawsuits have supported the rights of the disabled, including those with HIV/AIDS. Other laws used in support of the disabled include the Civil Rights Act of 1987, the Fair Housing Amendments of 1988, the Hill Burton Act, and the Education of the Handicapped Act. All states but Alabama have laws against discrimination of the disabled, and 26 states have extended this protection to persons with AIDS and symptomatic and asymptomatic HIV infection. For a variety of reasons, however, persons with HIV are often denied services by the very system which is designed to serve those with disabilities. Legal remedy may be sought in such cases, and particular considerations are discussed in the areas of education, child welfare, and residential services. Additional issues involving HIV testing, informed consent, confidentiality, and liability are also explored. Some legal issues are left unresolved because of uncertainty about the applicability of disability law to HIV infection. 10 references.