Runyon v. Board of Trustees of California State University

Opinion

WERDEGAR, J.

When an employee of the California State University (CSU) claims he or she suffered retaliation for making a protected disclosure under the California Whistleblower Protection Act (the Act) (Gov. Code, § 8547 et seq.), 1 and CSU, after an internal investigation, rejects the employee’s claim of retaliation, must the employee obtain a writ of mandate overturning CSU’s decision before he or she may bring an action for damages under section 8547.12? We hold CSU employees, like employees of state boards and agencies (see State Bd. of Chiropractic Examiners v. Superior Court…