786x496@100dpi - 6In December 2016, shortly after the November 8 presidential election, members of the California Legislature introduced for consideration a series of bills addressing immigration enforcement. Within the series, three bills would place limitations on a public agency’s ability to participate in federal immigration enforcement efforts and collect personal information regarding an individual’s religion, national origin

College-campus-from-aboveOne of the most contentious issues in higher education continues to be how to punish and deter student-to-student sexual assault, protect students and assault survivors, and at the same time fully honor the legal rights of all concerned.  Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits institutions of higher education from discriminating “on the

Breaking NewsThis post was authored by Kristin D. Lindgren

Background

On June 10, 2014, Liebert Cassidy Whitmore reported on the Superior Court decision in Vergara v. State of California.  The plaintiffs had alleged that teacher tenure, dismissal and layoff statutes found in the California Education Code unconstitutionally harmed students in two groups: (1) a general

US Supreme CourtAn unprecedented number of protests – at educational institutions and in city streets – occurred nationwide last year, and protests continue to serve as focal points for public attention and debate going into 2016.  The legal realm concerning free speech is in a similar state of turbulence for public employers and for educators.

Here are

AnotherGavel.jpgThis post was authored by Liara Silva and Alysha Stein-Manes

Last month, the California Court of Appeal issued a decision in Caldecott v. Superior Court (2015), finding that the Newport-Mesa Unified School District (“District”) was obligated under the California Public Records Act (“PRA”) to release certain documents related to an employee’s hostile work environment

Breaking-News1.jpgLast week, President Obama signed the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (“ESSA” or the “Act”) into law.  The Act reauthorizes the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (“ESEA”).  A bipartisan compromise bill, ESSA supersedes the controversial No Child Left Behind Act (“NCLB”).  ESSA effectively replaces NCLB’s federal-centric, one-size-fits-all model of K-12 education reform and

college-campus.jpgOver the past several years, mainstream media has become increasingly fixated on issues of sexual violence on college campuses, with major state universities like the University of Montana, Michigan State University, the University of Virginia (UVA), and the University of California at San Diego receiving the brunt of the attention and corresponding criticism.  The

US-Supreme-Court_2.jpgOn June 30, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States agreed to hear an appeal in Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association to answer the question of whether compulsory “agency shop” fees violate the First Amendment.  An “agency shop” arrangement requires non-union member employees to pay compulsory fees as a condition of employment even if

ConstructionSunset.jpgIn September 2012, Fresno USD’s governing board adopted a resolution authorizing the execution of lease-leaseback construction contracts without competitive bidding.

The lease-leaseback structure permits builder-financed construction.  A school district leases real estate it owns to a construction firm for $1.00 per year and the contractor agrees to build new facilities on that real estate.  This