Significant win for DeKalb school employees covered by the Tax Shelter Annuity Plan. The Georgia Court of Appeals ruled the lower court erred on the issue of liability for breach of contract on the two year notice provision when, in 2009, the school district stopped funding contributions for this retirement benefit without providing the required notice. This means the school district is liable for breach of contract. The ruling also means that all employees impacted by the 2009 decision should be certified as a class action. The main question left unresolved is one of damages.
Important for all GAE members is the Court of Appeals found the school board policy and its two year notice provision became part of the employees’ employment contract. We did not stand idly by when the trial court suggested that school board policy is somehow not the law of the school district. That is why GAE filed a “friend of the court” brief [insert “friend of the court brief”] to support the fundamental idea that school board policies are legally binding on the school district.