Martin v. Educational Testing Service, Inc.

431 A.2d 868, 179 N.J. Super. 317, 1981 N.J. Super. LEXIS 606
CourtNew Jersey Superior Court Appellate Division
DecidedApril 16, 1981
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 431 A.2d 868 (Martin v. Educational Testing Service, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Jersey Superior Court Appellate Division primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Martin v. Educational Testing Service, Inc., 431 A.2d 868, 179 N.J. Super. 317, 1981 N.J. Super. LEXIS 606 (N.J. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

179 N.J. Super. 317 (1981)
431 A.2d 868

JAMES L. MARTIN, PLAINTIFF,
v.
EDUCATIONAL TESTING SERVICE, INC., DEFENDANT.

Superior Court of New Jersey, Chancery Division Mercer County.

Decided April 16, 1981.

*320 James L. Martin plaintiff, argued the motion pro se.

*321 William J. Brennan, III, argued the motion for defendant (Smith, Stratton, Wise & Heher, attorneys).

DREIER, J.S.C.

The parties to this action are before the court for rehearing of defendant's motion for summary judgment.[1]

Plaintiff, James L. Martin, is an applicant for a Pennsylvania real estate salesman's license.[2] After satisfying all the eligibility requirements and paying the examination fees, plaintiff twice sat for the required Real Estate Licensing Examinations (hereafter the "R.E.L.E."), on November 11, 1979 and January 12, 1980. The examinations, administered by defendant Educational Testing Service, Inc. (hereafter "ETS") of Princeton, New Jersey, consisted of a uniform test, administered in all jurisdictions using the R.E.L.E., and a state test, developed in close cooperation with Pennsylvania and reflecting that state's particular real estate law and practice.[3] Both consist of objective, multiple-choice questions. Passing score, established by Pennsylvania, is 75, and a successful candidate for licensure must pass both parts of the examination. Plaintiff passed the uniform portion, but failed the state test twice, first scoring 67 in November 1979 and then 74 in January 1980.

Plaintiff thereafter made oral and written requests to ETS both to regrade his second examination and to send him copies of the state test. ETS informed plaintiff that under the signed *322 "agreement" between the parties[4] it was under no obligation to provide plaintiff with the requested information. ETS did regrade plaintiff's second examination by hand and found no grading error.

On May 12, 1980 plaintiff filed a pro se complaint against ETS (1) alleging that ETS wrongfully scored his examination[4a] and (2) requesting copies of the November 10, 1979 and January 12, 1980 examination, as well as plaintiff's and ETS' answers to both examinations for study purposes. Although not stated specifically, it appears from the pleadings that pursuant to the allegation of wrongful scoring plaintiff is requesting this court to rescore his examination and declare that he has passed all requirements for licensure should it be proven that a mistake was made which brought his score below passing level.[5]

*323 ETS has, among other things, answered that plaintiff's action is barred by the doctrines of waiver and estoppel in that he entered into the alleged "written contract" with ETS (the Bulletin of Information) which, as noted earlier, provided that a failing applicant had no right to review the test results. At the initial hearing ETS further argued that the documents sought were protected under the copyright laws, were confidential and constituted trade secrets.[6] Relying on these defenses, ETS moved for summary judgment on both of plaintiff's claims.

Plaintiff, in opposition to the motion for summary judgment, contends that he is unable to prove that ETS wrongfully graded his examination because the examination and answers are in the exclusive possession and control of ETS.

I

In deciding the issues in this case, it is first necessary to point out that plaintiff claims two distinct rights: (1) the substantive right to have his test graded accurately and (2) the procedural right to discovery as a means of ascertaining any violation of the substantive right. In the absence of a substantive right deserving of judicial protection, the granting of a procedural right would be meaningless.

A

In Brotspies v. Civil Service Dep't, N.J., 66 N.J. Super. 492 (App.Div. 1961), applicants for a New Jersey Civil Service position challenged, among other matters, the grading of particular questions on an objective, multiple-choice promotional examination, *324 alleging that the answers considered correct by the Department were, in fact, incorrect. On that issue the court said:

We have carefully reviewed the questions and answers considered correct by the respondent Department, as well as those claimed to be correct by plaintiffs' consensus. We perceive no reason for judicial intervention ... The answers considered correct by [respondent] ... have not been shown to be unreasonable or implausible. We are persuaded that respondent exercised a reasonable administrative judgment in finding its answers more appropriate than those for which plaintiffs contend. [at 498-499]

Although not directly addressed, it is implicit in the court's holding that had the answers been clearly incorrect there would be cause for judicial intervention. By clear implication, plaintiffs had a right to be accurately tested. This conclusion is inescapable on an examination of our law regarding due process.

The United States Supreme Court has held that all examinations designed to test the competence of one seeking a particular position or entry into an occupation or profession must be conducted in a manner which comports with due process. Schware v. Bd. of Examiners, 353 U.S. 232, 238-39, 77 S.Ct. 752, 755-56, 1 L.Ed.2d 796 (1957). It is, of course, elementary that action by the State which is arbitrary and capricious does not comport with due process.[7]Douglas v. Noble, 261 U.S. 165, 43 S.Ct. 303, 67 L.Ed. 590 (1923); Slochower v. Board of Higher Education, 350 U.S. 551, 76 S.Ct. 637, 100 L.Ed. 692 (1956), reh. den. 351 U.S. 944, 76 S.Ct. 843, 100 L.Ed. 1470 (1956); Robson v. Rodriquez, 26 N.J. 517, 522 (1958); State v. Krol, 68 N.J. 236 (1975).

In Zicherman v. Civil Service Dep't, 40 N.J. 347, 351 (1963), our Supreme Court indicated that it would uphold the validity of the form and content of an examination where "there *325 is any fair argument in support of the course taken [by the examiners.]" See, also Flanagan v. Civil Service Dep't, 29 N.J. 1, 12 (1959); Kelly v. Civil Service Comm'n, 37 N.J. 450, 460 (1962); Artaserse v. Civil Service Dep't, 37 N.J. Super. 98 (App. Div. 1955). Certainly, New Jersey places a heavy burden on one challenging the validity of an examination, but demands a fair argument, i.e., will not uphold an arbitrary and capricious action.

ETS relies on cases which found, among other things, no due process right to examinee review of the grading of bar examination questions. These cases are distinguishable on the nature of the examination alone. In Tyler v. Vickery, 517 F.2d 1089 (5 Cir.1975), and Whitfield v. Illinois Bd. of Law Examiners, 504 F.2d 474 (7 Cir.1974), applicants to the state bar challenged the correctness of subjective grading of essay examinations. In deciding that the type of review sought by plaintiffs was not necessary to due process, both courts stressed the subjective nature of the examinations involved. The courts indicated that correctness was elusive and that the burden on examiners of having to defend their evaluations of questions was great. Whitfield at 478; Tyler at 1102, 1105.[8]

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431 A.2d 868, 179 N.J. Super. 317, 1981 N.J. Super. LEXIS 606, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/martin-v-educational-testing-service-inc-njsuperctappdiv-1981.