Trends in education-related litigation: 1986--2004

Abstract

Much of what is believed about the amount and types of litigation in education is based on hunches and impressions rather than empirical research. This study provides a more accurate statistical picture of trends in education-related litigation in recent years than has previously been available. The study has two main parts. The first part is an analysis of reported cases from 1986-2004 found in the Westlaw database. The second part is a national survey of litigation experience of school districts across the country for the years 2001-2004. The main findings of this study are that the total amount of education-related litigation has grown only modestly during the years studied, that the rate of growth has been about the same as the growth of the number of students attending school in the same period, that the major area of litigation growth has been in the category of special education, that the two largest areas of litigation are negligence and special education and that, on average a school district can expect to be sued once per 3200 students per year. The study concludes that although there is not a litigation crisis in education, schools could and should do a more effective job preventing litigation. Knowing which areas of educational practice carry the greatest risk of litigation and accurately understanding the trends in litigation in general can help equip school administrators to improve practice and avoid unnecessary lawsuits.