Harris v. Board of Trustees of State Colleges

The plaintiff, a tenured professor at Bridgewater State College, brought a complaint alleging that the defendants dismissed him in violation of his constitutional rights to due process of law and to free speech. He alleged further that his employment as a tenured professor at a public institution was terminated without just cause, and in violation of his employment contract. A judge of the Superior Court dismissed all but the plaintiff’s contract claim. The plaintiff appealed and we transferred the case to this court on our own motion.

We summarize the relevant procedural history. On May 27,…