We are pleased to announce that Philip G. Clark has joined Thrun Law Firm as an associate attorney in the East Lansing office. Phil graduated from the University of Michigan (B.A., 2012) and Michigan State University College of Law (J.D., 2015, cum laude), where he was an articles editor for Michigan State...
With the holidays fast approaching, our gift to school officials is guidance on how to acknowledge the holidays without violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The only thing worse than coal in your stocking is a federal lawsuit!
Because public schools may not sponsor religious practices, such as prayer or devotional Bible readings, it is important that your school’s holiday celebrations have an educational purpose. This does not mean that all religious overtones...
A federal court in Virginia recently dismissed a transgender student’s Title IX claim that the school board’s sex-segregated restroom policy amounted to sex discrimination. GG v Gloucester Sch Bd, Docket No. 4:15-cv-54 (ED Va, 2015). The court declined to require the school to allow the student’s use of the restroom that...
The importance of obtaining “qualified status” each year from the Michigan Department of Treasury cannot be overemphasized. School districts, intermediate school districts, and public school academies that obtain qualified status are able to issue new bonds and notes more swiftly and pay lower filing fees to the State of Michigan. Schools that do not obtain qualified status may experience significant delays in issuing bonds and notes during calendar year 2016. Those delays may be especially...
In a matter handled by Thrun, the Michigan Employment Relations Commission recently offered additional guidance on the treatment of prohibited bargaining subjects contained in section 15 of the Public Employment Relations Act. Ionia Pub Schs and Ionia Ed Ass’n, MERC Case Nos. C12 E-094, CU12 C-013 (December 18, 2014)...
School officials must proactively protect public property from “squatters.” The Michigan Court of Appeals recently ruled that the statutory protection from adverse possession or acquiescence claims applies only when the municipal corporation initiates a lawsuit to protect public property, and not as a defense to a claim brought against the municipal corporation. Waisanen Family Trust v Superior Twp, 305 Mich App 719 (2014).
In 1971, Ken Waisanen bought property that abutted...
The Michigan Supreme Court recently issued an order denying the MEA’s application for leave to appeal in Baumgartner v Perry Pub Schs, Docket No. 151479 (July 10, 2015). The Court’s order lets stand the Court of Appeals’ ruling that the State Tenure Commission lacks jurisdiction to hear layoff and recall cases. We first reported on the Baumgartner decision in the March 26, 2015 edition of School Law Notes.
The Baumgartner decision is now a final...
The Michigan Court of Appeals recently ruled that a city’s failure to reappoint a political appointee to an administrative position after his term expired is not an “adverse employment action” that can give rise to liability under Michigan’s Whistleblower Protection Act (“WPA”). Whitman v City of Burton, Docket No. 294703 (July 9, 2015). The court also held that, under the WPA, “protected activity” does not include conduct that objectively serves an individual’s personal interest...
Governor Snyder recently signed a bill package to earlier identify and resolve fiscal stress in schools that combines enhanced financial reporting, “potential” fiscal stress determinations, modified deficit elimination plan requirements, and state aid withholding. This article summarizes the legislation.
Financial...
On Friday, February 27th Thrun Law Firm temporarily relocated its East Lansing office to Honolulu, Hawaii in an effort to cope with Michigan's harsh...