Case: Individual Employment Rights/Contracts (5th Cir.)

The Fifth Circuit revived a former Texas community college president’s breach-of-contract claims against Texas Southmost College District, which is a political subdivision of the state of Texas; but it said she wasn’t entitled to a damages award of $12.5 million based on the way that her termination hearing was conducted. The community college wasn’t entitled to constitutional immunity, and according to the Fifth Circuit, the Texas Legislature waived the ability of political subdivisions like community colleges to claim governmental immunity from breach-of-contract claims brought in state court, but not federal court. Texas lawmakers cannot bar a federal court from exercising ...