This legal-historical study proposed to determine the current legal status of American postsecondary education in terms of academic autonomy and freedom by examining the development of the common-law doctrine of academic abstention. The traditional model for studying the judicial process was the conceptual framework. Combining traditionalist elements of philosophy, law, and history with a normative perspective that jurists attempt to balance issues of order and justice, the study focused on specific court cases, judicial opinions, statutory law, and secondary sources since 1800 to distinguish the doctrine of academic abstention. / An analysis of over 700 state and federal decisions revealed that the term "academic abstention" did not appear in any reported decision but originated in the secondary literature. Judges employed a variety of synonymous phrases to denote a historical judicial deference to the special knowledge and expertise of academic officials. This traditional judicial deference was partially shaped by the law of specific equitable remedies, particularly the writ of mandamus, and was derived from a customary judicial respect for the discretionary authority of public officials. / Jurists applied other legal theories to justify abstention, including in loco parentis, discretionary authority, state-federal comity, the law of private associations, and contract law. These theories have little to do with academic abstention in its purest context, and the doctrine of special expertise emerged as the pre-eminent rationale for abstention. / The exercise of judicial abstention is a situational phenomenon. Applying interpretations appropriate to the factual aspects of each controversy and focusing on procedural, nonacademic issues, the courts have balanced the elements of order and justice without substituting their judgment for that of academicians. So long as academicians conduct their affairs without bad faith, arbitrary or capricious intent, impermissible discrimination, or abuse of authority, the judiciary will continue to defer to their discretionary judgment and special expertise. Thus, the doctrine of academic abstention is best defined in terms of the American judiciary's deference toward the substantive aspects of academe. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 50-12, Section: A, page: 3863. / Major Professor: Joseph Carl Beckham. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1989.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_78116 |
| Contributors | Leas, Terrence., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 322 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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