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Legal Services: Legal Assistance Fund (LAF)

Legal Assistance Fund background

The TASB Legal Assistance Fund was established in December 1980. The Fund is administered by a seven-member board of trustees made up of the President, President-Elect, and a Vice-President of the Texas Association of School Boards, the President and President-Elect of the Texas Association of School Administrators, and the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Texas Council of School Attorneys. The TASB President serves as Chair. Currently, approximately 750 school districts are members.

The purpose of the Fund is to provide support to school districts that are defending legal challenges with the potential to affect public schools statewide. In most of its cases, the Fund provides assistance in the form of an amicus curiae, or “friend of the court,” brief. An amicus brief explains to the court why a school district should win its case and how the court’s decision will affect other Texas school districts. The Fund’s briefs are written by highly qualified school attorneys from across the state. These briefs have undoubtedly played an important role in the outcome of several significant court cases affecting public schools.

In the thirty years since its inception, the Legal Assistance Fund has filed over 100 “friend of the court” briefs.

We hope that through the Fund’s efforts, courts and the community at large will gain a better understanding of how these fundamental issues affect education in our state.