Policy & Politics

Law & Courts

Education news, analysis, and opinion about court cases, lawsuits, and regulations affecting schools.

See also: Supreme Court, Court Cases, First Amendment, Student Rights

  • Photograph of the United States Supreme Court building in Washington DC, USA.
    E+/Getty
    Law & Courts How a Supreme Court Case on Job Transfers Will Impact Schools
    The justices consider whether workers alleging employment discrimination must show that a lateral job transfer harmed them.
    Mark Walsh, December 6, 2023
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    8 min read
    Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC) vice president Betsy Kippers leads a chant during a rally to protest Governor Scott Walker's budget repair bill, at the Brown County Courthouse in downtown Green Bay on February 16, 2011.
    Betsy Kippers, vice president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council, leads a chant during a rally to protest Gov. Scott Walker's budget repair bill, at the Brown County Courthouse in downtown Green Bay on February 16, 2011.
    H. Marc Larson/The Green Bay Press-Gazette via AP
    Law & Courts Wisconsin Teachers Sue to Restore Collective Bargaining Rights
    The lawsuit takes fresh aim at a 2011 law that severely restricted bargaining, and has survived several legal challenges since.
    Madeline Will, December 1, 2023
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    6 min read
    Justice Sandra Day O'Connor listens as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg pays tribute to O'Connor's advocacy work on behalf of civic education, impact on female judges and justice for women and girls worldwide at the Seneca Women Global Leadership Forum at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, on April 15, 2015 in Washington.
    Justice Sandra Day O'Connor listens to a tribute to her advocacy work on behalf of civics education and women's role in the legal profession at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, on April 15, 2015, in Washington.
    Kevin Wolf/Invision for Seneca Women via AP Images
    Law & Courts What Sandra Day O'Connor Did to Shape School Law and Civics Education
    O'Connor wrote influential opinions on affirmative action, Title IX, and other education issues. Then she tirelessly worked on civics.
    Mark Walsh, December 1, 2023
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    10 min read
    Gun safety and domestic violence prevention organizations gather outside of the Supreme Court before oral arguments are heard in United States v. Rahimi on Nov. 7, 2023, in Washington.
    Gun safety and domestic violence prevention organizations gather outside the U.S. Supreme Court before oral arguments are heard in <i>United States</i> v. <i>Rahimi</i> on Nov. 7, 2023, in Washington.
    Stephanie Scarbrough/AP
    Law & Courts U.S. Supreme Court Takes Up Major Gun Case With School Safety in Backdrop
    The principle that guns may be barred from schools may bolster a federal law restricting firearm possession by domestic abusers.
    Mark Walsh, November 7, 2023
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    6 min read
    The sun rises behind the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on Nov. 10, 2020.
    The sun rises behind the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on Nov. 10, 2020.
    Alex Brandon/AP
    Law & Courts What the Supreme Court Had to Say About School Board Members Blocking Constituents
    The justices take up a case involving school board members who blocked some constituents from posting comments on public social media pages.
    Mark Walsh, October 31, 2023
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    7 min read
    Image of a phone on the floor near the feet of a girl sitting on the floor.
    iStock/Getty
    Law & Courts 41 States Sue Meta Over the Social Media Giant's Impact on Kids
    States are suing Meta, the company behind Facebook and Instagram, saying the social media giant harms children’s mental health.
    Alyson Klein & Arianna Prothero, October 24, 2023
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    7 min read
    The setting sun illuminates the Supreme Court building in Washington on Jan. 10, 2023.
    The setting sun illuminates the Supreme Court building in Washington on Jan. 10, 2023.
    Patrick Semansky/AP
    Law & Courts School Board Members' Use of Social Media Faces Key First Amendment Test in Supreme Court
    The justices will decide whether school board members engaged in government action when they blocked parents who posted repetitive comments.
    Mark Walsh, October 24, 2023
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    9 min read
    Law themed still life featuring Themis statue, judge gavel and scale of justice in a law library.
    iStock / Getty Images
    Law & Courts State Judge Says 'Racially Isolated Districts Persist' in New Jersey
    A state judge allows a narrowed claim to go forward that the state may be liable for pervasive racial isolation in its public schools.
    Mark Walsh, October 17, 2023
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    7 min read
    Image of a gavel and a family symbol.
    marchmeena29/iStock/Getty
    Law & Courts District Can't Let Students Change Pronouns Without Parental Consent, Judge Rules
    A Wisconsin judge said gender transitions are a medical issue over which parents have fundamental control, including on pronouns in school.
    Mark Walsh, October 5, 2023
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    4 min read
    A poster is held at the Iowa Queer Student Alliance "We say gay" rally inside the Iowa State Capitol on March 8, 2023, in Des Moines, Iowa.
    The Iowa Queer Student Alliance holds a "We say gay" rally inside the Iowa State Capitol on March 8, 2023, in Des Moines. The legislature passed a bill last spring that prohibits school districts from providing false or misleading information to parents regarding their children's gender identity. A federal appeals court ruled that the new law made parts of a lawsuit against the Linn-Mar Community School District's policy moot, though the court revived a challenge to one part of the policy.
    Margaret Kispert/The Des Moines Register via AP
    Law & Courts Appeals Court Blocks District Policy That Requires Students to 'Respect' Gender Identity
    The federal appeals court panel holds that the policy is likely unconstitutionally vague under the First Amendment.
    Mark Walsh, September 29, 2023
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    4 min read
    Sa Thao signs the 2022 Mobile Recovery National Bus during a stop at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., on Sept. 7, 2022. Across the country, people in recovery and relatives of those killed by opioid overdoses are pressing for roles in determining how billions in opioid settlement money will be used. That push is one of the missions of the monthlong nationwide bus tour. Thao was addicted to methamphetamine but through recovery programs has been clean for 18 months.
    Sa Thao signs the 2022 Mobile Recovery National Bus during a stop at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., on Sept. 7, 2022. Across the country, people in recovery and relatives of those killed by opioid overdoses are pressing for roles in determining how billions in opioid settlement money will be used.
    Rich Pedroncelli/AP
    Law & Courts School Districts Are Poised For a $23 Million Payout in New Opioid Settlement
    If the settlement is approved, school districts will be able to apply for grants to address the effects of opioids on their students and staff.
    Mark Lieberman, September 29, 2023
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    4 min read
    The Supreme Court is seen in Washington on Sept. 25, 2023. The new term of the high court begins Oct. 2, 2023.
    The Supreme Court is seen in Washington on Sept. 25, 2023. The new term of the high court begins Oct. 2, 2023.
    J. Scott Applewhite/AP
    Law & Courts In New Term, Supreme Court Set to Tackle Case on School Board Members' Social Media Use
    The docket for education cases looks more modest than last term, but cases on magnet schools and transgender students could be added.
    Mark Walsh, September 28, 2023
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    11 min read
    Photo of officer with taser in holster.
    iStock / Getty Images Plus
    Law & Courts Court Upholds School Resource Officer's Use of a Taser on a Student With a Disability
    A federal appeals panel upheld qualified immunity for the SRO and rejected the student's disability-discrimination and civil rights claims.
    Mark Walsh, August 30, 2023
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    5 min read
    California Attorney General Rob Bonta fields questions during a press conference on Aug. 28, 2023, in Los Angeles. California's attorney general sued a Southern California school district Monday over its recently adopted policy that requires schools to notify parents if their children change their gender identification or pronouns.
    California Attorney General Rob Bonta answers questions from the media on Aug. 28, 2023, in Los Angeles. Bonta is suing the Chino Valley Unified school district over a policy that requires schools to notify parents if their children change their gender identification or pronouns.
    Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP
    Law & Courts California Sues to Stop District From Disclosing Trans Students' Name Changes or Pronouns
    The lawsuit challenges the Chino Valley district's policy requiring schools to notify parents about requests for gender changes.
    Mark Walsh, August 28, 2023
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    5 min read
    Fulton County Chief Senior Assistant District Attorney Fani Willis takes notes while questioning University of Michigan professor Brian Jacob, a statistical analysis expert, as he testifies in a case against a group of Atlanta public school educators accused in a scheme to inflate students’ standardized test scores in Fulton County Superior Court, Ga., Feb. 10, 2015. Willis' most prominent case as an assistant district attorney was a RICO prosecution against the group of educators. After a seven-month trial, a jury in April 2015 convicted 11 of them on the racketeering charge.
    Then-Fulton County chief senior assistant district attorney Fani Willis taking notes as a witness testified in a case against a group of Atlanta public school educators accused in a scheme to inflate students’ standardized test scores in Fulton County Superior Court, Ga., Feb. 10, 2015.
    Kent D. Johnson/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP
    Law & Courts What Trump's Prosecution in Georgia Has in Common With the Atlanta Schools Cheating Case
    The DA in the Georgia election interference case against Trump was a lead prosecutor in the school cheating scandal.
    Mark Walsh, August 23, 2023
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    7 min read
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