The Arkansas school finance equity suit titled "Lakeview vs. Tucker" was heard in 1994, and the state funding formula was declared unconstitutional. With much difficulty, a new law was passed to combine a number of previously categorical funds into the instructional budget. However, the constitutionality of the new law remains in…

In an expansion of his paper presented at the American Bar Association's 1978 annual meeting, Professor Goetz reviews the 1977 Supreme Court labor law decisions, focusing on employment discrimination cases and the legality of affirmative action programs in the decision in Board of Regents of the University of California v Bakke. (MF)

These materials include the script for a mock trial in which students are asked to role play the participants in a case based on the facts of New Jersey v. T.L.O., 469 U.S. 325 (1985). The case raised questions involving a students' rights to protection against unreasonable searches and seizures under the Fourth Amendment and schools' needs to…

This chapter reviews litigation in higher education for 1986. The first section discusses the relationship between postsecondary institutions and various governmental agencies, in which litigation covers questions on the authority of boards, access to information through sunshine laws, questions of tax exempt status, and issues of accreditation.…

The purpose of this paper is to examine, from a Constitutional perspective, the bases on which ability grouping and tracking might be challenged as barriers to equal educational opportunity. Findings from educational research on ability grouping, commentary from law review journals, and the texts of cases themselves are included as a part of the…

Discusses a euthanasia incident in which a doctor claimed, in a letter to the "Journal of the American Medical Association," to have given a fatal dose of morphine to a dying cancer patient. Debates the ethical issues involved in the journal's decision to print the letter, withholding the author's name. (DB)

This paper discusses how to determine whether a test was developed in a legally defensible manner, reviewing general issues, specific cases bearing on different types of test use, some evaluative dimensions, and evidence of test quality. Tests constructed and used according to existing standards will generally stand legal scrutiny. (SLD)

The review of 1994 judicial pronouncements on the law of higher education reports on and discusses cases addressing the First Amendment, invasion of privacy, tort liability, immunities, civil procedure, access to records and meetings, funding, employment, disciplinary decision, discrimination against students, intercollegiate athletics, and…

The principal's domain has been increasingly shaped by demands for accountability, by student activism and teacher collectivism, and by increased administrative centralization. Principals need to know their legal rights and responsibilities in order to survive in the principalship. This book was designed to serve as a practice primer for the…

This chapter reviews collective bargaining cases in education during 1986. Although the courts addressed a broad range of topics, no new legal principles were applied in these cases. The courts relied on traditional labor law concepts and applied them to the specific statutes and policies of the applicable jurisdiction. The review addresses the…

Various legal issues associated with teacher evaluation and significant court decisions are summarized in this handbook. Three major legal issues are defined: (1) failure of the school district to follow due process when terminating tenured and non-tenured teachers, or when abolishing positions; (2) discrimination in employment and promotion, or…

Until the 1880s, the language of instruction and that spoken by students was dictated by the culture of the community. Although public officials advised immigrants to use American English rather than their mother tongues, no legislation was enacted mandating English as the official language of education. However, with sizeable groups of immigrants…

A 4-day simulation activity encourages high school students to confront issues of law and journalism through exploration of seven legal issues: prior restraint, access to courts, rights of reply, libel, privacy, confidential sources, and use of stolen documents. The kit contains all materials needed for the simulation, including a director's…

Legal issues involved when a religious college accepts government financial assistance and potential legal strategies that the religious colleges might use to support receipt of such assistance are considered. In order to receive government benefits, the private religious college may be placed in the position of having to prove itself…

A study on access to higher education in Germany was written as part of a larger study on access and admission in that country and the United States. The complex dimensions of the access situation in Germany are set forth, along with the many factors that have produced crisis: demographic trends, reforms in secondary education, legal and…