The Second District Court of Appeal held that a teacher has a right to have a lawyer present when being interviewed by School District staff as part of an investigation of misconduct. Raven v. Manatee County School Board, Case No. 2D-081533 (Fla. 2d DCA December 2, 2009), which can be found here. The Court held that, under the circumstances of this case, the teacher was entitled to have his lawyer present for the investigatory interview.
The Court based its decision on Section 120.62(2), Florida Statutes, which provides that anyone who appears before an “agency” of the State of Florida “in an investigation” has a right to counsel. In this case, the Manatee County School Board (an “agency” within the meaning of the statute) had promulgated a School Board policy which provided that staff of the School District would investigate complaints of misconduct. The Court held that this School Board policy had the effect of delegating the School Board’s investigatory authority to the School District. Thus, the requirements of Section 120.62(2) applied to such investigations.
Whether a particular School District will be required to allow an employee to have his or her attorney present during an investigatory interview regarding alleged misconduct may ultimately depend upon the particular provisions of the rules of the School Board in that particular School District.
Prepared by:
Jim Dean
jdean@lawfla.com
