As school officials approach contract negotiations with teacher or support staff unions, thorough preparation is essential to achieving a fair, sustainable, and legally compliant collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Effective preparation not only helps to ensure that the school’s goals are clearly defined and collectively supported, but it also promotes positive labor-management relations and reduces the risk of disputes after ratification.
Review the Current CBA and Identify...
Recent developments related to SSAA Section 31aa funding have put the attorney-client privilege squarely in the spotlight for Michigan schools. Understanding the attorney-client privilege, as well as how it can be maintained or lost, is critical now more than ever for school officials.
What Is the Attorney-Client Privilege?
The attorney-client privilege is one of the oldest and most fundamental doctrines in law. It shields communications between an attorney and a...
For 2026, the regular election dates for millage or bond proposals are:
May 5
August 4
November 3
Because schools are responsible for any “added costs” of an election, placing proposals on the ballots during an even-year statewide primary election in August or the general election in November can significantly reduce expenses. Schools should contact their election attorney to discuss how different election dates may affect costs and overall...
After 37 years of exemplary service to Thrun Law Firm and Michigan public schools, we are pleased to share that Lisa Swem has retired. Lisa’s legal expertise and tireless efforts in representing Thrun clients have significantly shaped the legal landscape of Michigan public education.
Lisa’s interest in school law dates back to the...
Thrun Law Firm announces the retirement of our colleague and friend Jeff Soles, who will retire at the end of this year after more than three decades of dedicated service to the Firm and to Michigan schools.
Since joining the Firm in 1994, Jeff’s practice has focused on public finance and elections, where his careful analysis and steady judgment have made him a...
As announced in our September 30, 2025 E-Blast, schools nationwide are joining a lawsuit against PowerSchool and related defendants concerning the December 2024 PowerSchool data breach and PowerSchool’s alleged contract breaches, specifically MDL No. 3149 in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California.
To join the litigation, your board...
As explained in our February 24, 2025, E-Blast, under Public Act 1 of 2025, Michigan’s minimum wage will increase as follows for staff who are not exempt from Fair Labor Standards Act minimum wage requirements (e.g., hourly staff members):
By...
Last month, we provided a general overview of the new state budget, which amends the State School Aid Act (“SSAA”) for State fiscal year 2025-2026. We are now drawing attention to SSAA Section 164k to highlight potential penalties resulting from non-compliance.
Section 164k mandates that schools comply with the following, or risk losing 5% of designated Section 22b funding for school districts, or Section 81 funding for ISDs, during the period of noncompliance if a violation is...
An en banc panel of all 17 judges on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, whose decisions are binding on Michigan schools, recently ruled that a parent group was likely to succeed on the merits of its claim that an Ohio school violated students’ free speech rights when it prohibited them from using “biological pronouns” when referring to transgender and nonbinary students, rather than those students’ preferred pronouns. In a case that highlights the tension between anti-...
On October 14, 2025, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, whose decisions are binding in Michigan, upheld a ruling allowing public schools to censor student speech reasonably determined to be vulgar. B.A. v Tri Co Area Schs, No. 24-1769 (CA 6, 2025). As reported in our September 26, 2024 edition of School Law Notes, this case concerned two students who, on different...