Johnson v. Southern University

803 So. 2d 1140, 2001 WL 1659429
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 28, 2001
Docket2000 CA 2615
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 803 So. 2d 1140 (Johnson v. Southern University) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Johnson v. Southern University, 803 So. 2d 1140, 2001 WL 1659429 (La. Ct. App. 2001).

Opinion

803 So.2d 1140 (2001)

Clyde E. JOHNSON, Jr.
v.
SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY and A & M College.

No. 2000 CA 2615.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

December 28, 2001.

*1142 Dan M. Scheuermann, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for Plaintiff/Appellant, Clyde E. Johnson, Jr.

Winston G. Decuir, Sr., Linda Law Clark, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for Defendant/Appellee, Board of Supervisors for Southern University and A & M College.

BEFORE: GONZALES, KUHN, and CIACCIO[1], JJ.

KUHN, Judge.

Plaintiff, Clyde E. Johnson, Jr., appeals the trial court's dismissal of his petition against defendant, Southern University and Agricultural and Mechanical College ("Southern University"), on the grounds that it fails to state a cause of action. Following Southern University's action of restricting his class assignments, Johnson sought judicial review under the Louisiana Administrative Procedure Act ("LAPA"), La.R.S. 49:950 et seq. In considering whether Johnson is entitled to judicial review of the university's decision to restrict the classes that he teaches, we address whether the university's actions constitute a rule or an adjudication within the meaning of the LAPA. In making that determination, we consider 1) whether a university violates a tenured professor's due process rights by changing his class assignments without holding a hearing prior to imposing the change, and 2) whether a change in class assignments constitutes an adverse economic decision sufficient to support a claim that the university has retaliated against the professor in violation of his free speech rights. We affirm.

I. PROCEDURAL AND FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Johnson filed suit against Southern University seeking judicial review pursuant to La.R.S. 49:964. In his petition, Johnson alleges he is a tenured professor with Southern University and has served as a professor of biology since 1970. He states that Dorothy Thompson became chairperson of the Department of Biological Sciences on August 17, 1998, and that prior to that date, he and other Southern University faculty members had petitioned to reopen the search for a new chairperson due to their belief that Thompson was not qualified for the job. Johnson asserts that his opposition to Thompson caused animosity towards him from Thompson and others in the department.

Johnson further alleged that during early 1999, four students filed unfounded grievances concerning his teaching, testing and grading methods. He asserts that *1143 without investigating the veracity of these complaints, Brenda Birkett, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, issued a directive that restricted his teaching responsibilities to consist of multi-sectioned classes only. Johnson complains that the directive effectively restricts him from teaching physiology courses.

Johnson asserts he has sought a rescission of the directive through university grievance procedures and has requested a hearing on the issue to no avail. He states that the Vice Chancellor, the Chancellor, and the System President denied his requests to have the directive rescinded and that the Board of Supervisors for Southern University ("the Board") also declined his request for a hearing.

Thus, Johnson contends that Southern University has violated his due process rights by not affording him a hearing before depriving him of the privilege of teaching physiology courses. Johnson also claims that Southern University has retaliated against him for challenging Thompson's qualifications, thereby violating his right to free speech.

In response to Johnson's petition, the Board filed a motion to dismiss, urging that the petition fails to state a cause of action upon which the court could grant relief. The Board also asserted that Johnson has no right to judicial review of an internal personnel decision of the Board, contending that the LAPA is not applicable.

After a hearing, the trial court granted the Board's motion to dismiss. The court reasoned that the university's decisions regarding teaching assignments are internal decisions not subject to judicial review and concluded that the petition failed to state a cause of action for which Johnson can seek redress.

II. JUDICIAL REVIEW UNDER LAPA

The LAPA, La.R.S. 49:950 et seq., provides a method of judicial review for agency action. It applies, however, only to certain actions taken by certain administrative agencies. Jones v. Southern University and A & M College System Through Bd. Of Supervisors, 96-1430 (La.App. 1st Cir. 5/9/97); 693 So.2d 1265, 1268. Section 963 of the LAPA provides for judicial review of the validity or applicability of agency rules, and Section 964 of the LAPA provides for judicial review of agency adjudications. Id. The Board's decision to uphold the teaching restriction that limits Johnson's class assignments to multi-sectioned classes does not constitute a rule or an adjudication within the meaning of the LAPA. Thus, for the following reasons, Johnson is not entitled to judicial review under the LAPA. The trial court properly dismissed plaintiff's suit because it did not have subject matter jurisdiction to review the Board's decision. Id at 1269.

A. Rule

Section 951(6) of the LPA defines a rule, in pertinent part, as follows:

"Rule" means each agency statement, guide, or requirement for conduct or action, exclusive of those regulating only the internal management of the agency ..., which has general applicability and the effect of implementing or interpreting substantive law or policy, or which prescribes the procedure or practice requirements of the agency.
Emphasis added.

Decisions regarding teaching assignments are matters pertaining to the internal management of a university. See Jones, 693 So.2d at 1268; Grace v. Board of Trustees for State Colleges and Universities, 442 So.2d 598, 601 (La.App. 1st Cir. 1983), writ denied, 444 So.2d 1223 (La. 1984). As such, the Board's decision to *1144 uphold the teaching restriction effecting Johnson's class assignments does not constitute a "rule" as defined by the LAPA.

B. Adjudication

A person who is aggrieved by a final decision or order in an adjudication proceeding is entitled to judicial review under the LAPA. La.R.S. 49:964(A). An "adjudication" is defined as an "agency process for the formulation of a decision or order." La.R.S. 49:951(1). A "decision" or "order" is defined in La.R.S. 49:951(3) as

[T]he whole or any part of the final disposition (whether affirmative, negative, injunctive, or declaratory in form) of any agency, in any matter other than rulemaking, required by constitution or statute to be determined on the record after notice and opportunity for an agency hearing....

Thus, the LAPA provides for judicial review in an adjudication. An adjudication is a proceeding resulting in a decision or order. A decision or order is, for purposes of the LAPA, a disposition required by constitution or statute to be made only after notice and a hearing. Jones, 693 So.2d at 1269; Parochial Employees' Retirement System of Louisiana v. Caddo Parish Comm'n, Etc., 95-0243 (La.App. 1st Cir. 3/15/96), 676 So.2d 105, 107, writ denied, 96-0955 (La.5/31/96), 673 So.2d 1031.

In Matter of Carline Tank Services, Inc., 627 So.2d 669, 670 (La.App. 1 Cir. 1993), (on rehearing), this court further explained the process that should be employed in determining what type of action constitutes a "decision" or "order" under the LAPA:

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Bluebook (online)
803 So. 2d 1140, 2001 WL 1659429, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/johnson-v-southern-university-lactapp-2001.