Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1942 )

Hon. F. E. Mitchell Opinion No. O-4845
County Attorney Re: Liability of district for salary
Callahan County of school superintendent
Baird, Texas
Dear Sir:
We have received your letter of recent date which we
quote in part as follows:
“The trustees of Putnam Independent School Dis-
trict in Callahan County employed a superintendent
in the summer of 1941, on a yearly basis, the salary
to be paid in monthly installments. The term of such
employment was from July 1, 1941 to July 1, 1942.
“Said superintendent closed the school term about
May 20, 1942, and was paid the monthly installment for
the month May, 1942. The superintendent then left
before June 1, 1942, and secured employment elsewhere,
moving away from the school district and having no
further contact with the school. He is now demanding
the last monthly installment for the month of June,
1942. His theory is that under his employment he was
not required to do more than finish the school for
the year 1941-42, while the trustees think it was his
duty to remain for the full year, in order to see af-
ter the interest of the school and the students, in
such matters as making transcripts of credits, etc.,
and I have given them my opinion to the effect that
they are correct in this matter, his employment being
for the year, though paid in monthly installments.
May I have your opinion as to whether or not the said
superintendent is entitled to said last month’s in-
stallment under the facts stated above.”
Article 2781, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, pro-
vides as follows:
“The Board of Trustees of any city or town or any
independent school district may employ a superintendent,
principal, teacher, or other executive officers in the
schools therein for a term not to exceed three years,
provided that the Board of Trustees of an independent
school district which had a scholastic population of
5,000 or more in the last preceding scholastic year may
Hon. F. E. Mitchell, page 2 (O-4845)
employ a superintendent, principal, teacher, or
other executive officers in the schools therein
for a term not to exceed five years. All twelvQ-
added)
This opinion necessarily will be general in nature.
In the first place, this department is not authorized to pass
on questions of fact. In the second place, we do not have the
contract of employment before us for examination. We assume
that such contract was legally entered into, that it calls for
services’over a period ‘of 12 months, and that, the board of trus-
tees has done nothing in the nature of breaching th%e contract.
You will notice that Article ,,2781 provides that 12
monthcontracts shall begin on July 1st and end on June 30th.
Evidently; the board of ‘trustees had this provision In mind when
the contract was entered into. If the contract called for the
services of ,the superintendent fo.r a ,period of 12 months and the
superintendent left at the end of 11 months and did not perform
~services during the 12th.month, such action ,being in no way
.caused by the~‘board of trustees, then it is our opinion that the
school district is not liable for his salary for the 12th month.
We quote-, the following from Corpus Juri s, Volume 56,
page 396: ”
?The rules of law relating to the ,performance
,and, breach of contracts generally, apply to, contracts
between teachers and the school authorities. ,Both
parties must perform the. contract according t.o its
terms.ll,
The following appears on page 411 of the same volume:
“Failure ~of: the teacher to perfarm.his part of the
contract is a defense to an action by him to recover
damages for its ,breach,by the school.board, as where
he failed-to secure a certificate, or voluntarily aban-
doned his employment before the end of his term.”
In view of the foregoing you are respectfully ,aavi.sed
that where a superintendent is employed under Article 2781, supra,
by the board of trustees of an independent Scholl district under
a’ contract for al p’eriod of 12 months’and such superintendent,
through-,no fault or action on the part of the board.of trustees,
leaves, at the, end, ‘of ,the .llth month anddoes not pe~rform any
. I
Hon. F. E. Mitchell, page 3 (O-4845)
services during the 12th month of the contract, the school
district is not liable to the superintendent for his salary
for the 12th month. This opinion is expressly limited to
the fact situation presented and the assumptions made.
Very truly yours
ATTORNEYGENERAI,OF TEXAS
By /s/ George W. Sparks
George W. Sparks, Assistant
APPROVEDOCT 9, 1942
/s/ Grover Sellers
FIRST ASSISTANT ATTORNEYGENERAL!
APPROVED: OPINIOti COMMITTEE
BY: BWB, CHAIRMAN
GWS:db:wb