Law Department Employees Union v. City of Flint

This case involves a dispute over methods used by defendant Flint Civil Service Commission (commission) to fill three vacancies in the Flint classified service. More generally, it requires our determination of how much discretion the commission is granted by Flint Charter § 247 to decide whether a vacancy should be filled by a promotional or an open competitive exam. The focal point of this controversy is the first sentence of § 247(a):

"Vacancies in higher positions in the classified service shall be filled so far as practicable by the promotion or advancement of employees in the service.”…