Suicide rates among teenagers have increased significantly in recent years. The professional literature for public school personnel has been increasingly extensive. Yet, the corresponding coverage of liability case law regarding student suicide has been far from systematic and objective. An article in a legal periodical, written by Zirkel and…

This article provides a multipart analysis of the public schools' responsibility for students with concussions. The first part provides the prevailing diagnostic definitions of concussions and postconcussive syndrome. The second and central part provides (a) the legal framework of the two overlapping federal laws--the Individuals with Disabilities…

Discusses previous litigation relevant to the case of a child suffering from "spina bifida" whose parents have brought suit against a Texas school district for failing to include catheterization in the child's individual education program. (Author/WD)

In a suit involving an assaulted Native American middle school student, a federal court judge granted the Philadelphia Public Schools' motion for summary judgment. Even in this post-Columbine era, senseless on-campus, student-to-student violence is generally not considered a civil-rights issue. Exceptions are noted. (MLH)

Discusses a Texas sexual harassment case (Gebser v Lago Vista Independent School District involving a high-school English teacher and an eighth grader. Lower and federal courts favored the school district as to liability claims. In June 1998, the U.S. Supreme Court voted to adopt the actual notice standard, affirming dismissal of the plaintiff's…

Parents whose learning-disabled son committed suicide after being suspended (without notice) sued the school district for violating the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and their 14th Amendment due-process rights. They won summary judgment on the IDEA claim, but lost the school liability claim. The case will be retried. (MLH)

A hypothetical case of denial of tenure by a public institution to a faculty member with persistent personality conflicts with colleagues is the context for a discussion of related legal issues and the results of previous court litigation. (MSE)

Describes a suit against the East Lansing (Michigan) Schools, brought by conservative religious parents dissatisfied with counseling, music, and conflict-resolution activities provided for their third-grade son. The plaintiffs' action failed. The Hatch Act has limitations. However, there is strong public sentiment against entrusting schools with…

Reviews present and proposed states of the copyright law in the field of higher education addressing questions of what is covered, who should be compensated, and how they could be compensated. Concludes there is broader protection for educational materials but narrower leeway for educational users than is commonly realized. (JT)

Reviewed court cases concerning student retention and found that courts generally defer to the promotion-retention decisions of school officials. However, courts may demand additional justification for retention decisions based on a single criteria and are likely to overturn school retention decisions that have a disproportionate impact on…

Liability in cases involving students injured off school property generally hinges on whether districts fail to exercise due care in supervising students while on school premises. Typical activities that may occasion liability for negligence and possible defenses are listed. (MJL)

An empirical analysis of 290 administrative and court decisions concerning students with autism reveals that the volume of autism litigation is on a steadily and steeply rising slope and that the outcomes of the cases studied across a wide variety of issues have favored school districts to a slight extent. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)

The legal situation of a college being sued by a group of students following elimination of a graduate program is outlined and analyzed in terms of other related court litigation, the possible directions of the case, and the college's possible legal defenses. (MSE)

A Florida student suicide case alleging administrative and school board negligence had mixed results. School officials must be vigilant about the possibility of student suicide and put appropriate procedures into place. The connections to school may include confidential communications, curricular linkages (educational films and student journals),…

In a case involving a swim-team student's mandatory pregnancy test and a varsity coach's mishandling of confidentiality, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals awarded the coach qualified immunity, while rejecting the student's Fourth and First Amendment claims. Discretion and legal counsel would have helped. (MLH)