Amy Gajda. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2009; 360 pp; ISBN: 978-0-67403-567-6, cloth $35 usd.

Once upon a time, virtually no one in the academy thought to sue over campus disputes, and, if they dared, judges bounced the case on grounds that it was no business of the courts. Tenure decisions, grading curves, course content and committee assignments were the stuff of faculty meetings, not lawsuits. Litigation is now common on campus, and perhaps even more commonly feared. Professors sue each other for defamation based on assertions in research articles or tenure review letters; students sue professors for breach of contract when an F prevents them from graduating; professors threaten to sue students for unfairly criticizing their teaching. These battles are changing campus life, eroding traditional notions of academic autonomy and confidentiality, and encouraging courts to micromanage all aspects of higher education. The Trials of Academe explores the origins and causes of the litigation trend, its implications for academic freedom, and what lawyers, judges and academics can do to limit the potential damage.

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