Defendant responses are due today to the Mercer County Superior Court of New Jersey in HG v. Harrington (docket # L-2170-16), the lawsuit filed by Newark parents challenging the state’s “last in, first out” (LIFO) teacher layoff law. The teachers’ union defendants are expected to file motions to dismiss the case and defend the mandatory quality-blind LIFO law that results in some school districts retaining ineffective teachers while laying off effective teachers.

Defendants in the case are:

• New Jersey State Board of Education
• Acting Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Education Kimberly Harrington
• Newark Public School District
• Superintendent of the Newark School District Christopher Cerf
• New Jersey Education Association
• AFT, AFL-CIO and affiliates including Newark Teachers Union (NTU)

When: Filings must be submitted at the Superior Court of New Jersey Law Division – Mercer County by close of business today, Monday, March 13, 2017.

Today, an op-ed by Newark parent and plaintiff Iris Smith was published on InsiderNJ.com. Last week, Partnership for Educational Justice, the nonprofit supporting the HG v. Harrington plaintiffs and their pro bono attorneys, released a short animated video explaining the quality-blind LIFO law and its impact in Newark.

To learn more about the lawsuit, please go to edjustice.org/nj. All legal filings related to HG v. Harrington are posted here; defendants’ responses will be posted as soon as they are available.

Founded in 2014, Partnership for Educational Justice is a nonprofit organization pursuing impact litigation that empowers families and communities to advocate for great public schools through the courts. In addition to its work with New Jersey families, PEJ is currently working with parents and students in New York and Minnesota in support of legal challenges to unjust teacher employment statutes in those states.