school-law
USA Public School Law. Is contract law somehow relevant?
<p>I am trying to understand the main, basic tenets of USA public vs. private school law.</p>
<p>A question I have is whether or not the relationship between a student (/family) and a <strong>public</strong> school is somehow regulated by a contract, or under contract law. In the case it is, is there any interesting case discussed in terms of contract law (breach of a contract, remedies, ...)?</p>
<p>Thanks for some pointer to relevant references.</p>

<p>As a terminological matter, I assume that by &quot;public school&quot; you mean state-operated K-12 systems. As a part of the government, public schools cannot be sued unless the state has allowed a suit on such grounds. Issues such as negligence and violation of rights are not litigated under contract-law theories.</p>
<p>Because the public school is required to accept and teach students, parents are required to send their children to school, and parents are not obligated to pay anything, the opportunities for a contract to exist are highly limited. I set aside popular fake contracts between student and teacher which simply recites the teacher's pedagogical vows and expectations, since these are not enforceable contracts with new obligations and consideration. IEP (<a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/20/1414#d" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Individualized Education Program</a>) &quot;contracts&quot; may be advertised as being agreements, but they are mandated (of the school) by law.
The contract would be between the parent and the school because the student as a minor lacks capacity to form contracts. The parent cannot be &quot;forced&quot; into an enforceable contract since state law already mandates that the school must provide an education, and the parent never faces the &quot;sign or no schooling&quot; choice. Public schools can, of course, contract with a business, for example a pest-control service, or employment in general. The person whom they contract with can naturally be a parent of a child in the district, but the business contract is incidental to the person's being a parent.</p>
