Colleges and the Courtroom

Abstract

While popular focus in the field of academic litigation has been largely on the admissions process as a result of Regents of the Univ. of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265, 98 S.Ct. 2733, 57 L.Ed.2d 750 (1978) and desegregation, college administrators also have been involved in lawsuits involving such diverse issues as suspension and expulsion of students; search and seizure of dormitory rooms; censorship of student newspapers; student access to controversial outside speakers; campus security; rights of handicapped students; equal rights in athletic programs, facilities, scholarships and aid; grades; privacy rights; recognition of student groups; hiring and firing of faculty; collective bargaining and faculty unions; fund raising; copyright laws and collection of student loans. This article will survey these less publicized issues, many of which have led college administrators to believe that a J.D. was more essential to the adequate performance of their jobs than a Ph.D and have often resulted in a temporary relocation of the halls of academia to the nearest court house.A college community is comprised essentially of four major groups: the students, the faculty, the administration, and the trustees. Alumni participate primarily through these four other groups. The plethora of litigation in the collegiate sphere has resulted from the interaction of each of these components as well as from requirements imposed on colleges by state and federal governments.