An Analytic Framework for Understanding and Evaluating the Fiduciary Duties of Educators

Abstract

The law, it seems, is of increasing concern to teachers and educators. A generation ago, teachers, administrators, schools, school districts, and universities seldom worried about being held legally liable for their actions or failures to act. This is no longer the case. In recent years, educators and educational institutions have been found legally liable for a variety of types of misconduct, in a wide range of contexts, and under several legal theories, including criminal law, tort law, sexual harassment statutes, contract law, "educational malpractice," and recently under the vague and uncertain equitable concept of fiduciary duty.

Keywords: schools, school districts, fiduciary duties, educators, teachers, universities, fiduciary duty