美国高校教师受聘权的合同法保障——以“萨雷塔案”为例

Contract Law Protection for the Employment Right of American Faculty——The case of Salaita

已与美国伊利诺伊大学香槟分校签订聘任合同的萨雷塔因发表反以色列言论,其聘任被校董事会和校长推翻。在由此引发的诉讼中,法院认定大学构成违约并违反了承诺禁反言原则,最终支持了萨雷塔的受聘权。该案的司法解释主要围绕双方当事人的言行是否满足合同成立的基本要件以及"受制于董事会的批准"是否为合同的履约条件展开。该案中,大学与教师签订聘任合同、提供教师手册等行为均属于合同缔结中的要约与承诺行为,证明双方合同已经生效,董事会的批复仅属于合同约定的大学在未来需要履行的义务,不属于合同成立条件。

Salaita, who signed a contract with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, had his employment rejected by the School Board of Directors and the President for expressing anti-Israel ideas. In the lawsuit caused by this case, the court held that the teacher had the right to charge against the university for breaching the contract and violation of the Promissory Estoppel principle. The decision finally upheld Salaita’s right to be hired. The interpretation of the case focuses on whether the acts of two parties meet the needs of the elements of the formation of Contract and whether "subject to" the Board of Trustees’ approval belongs to the condition of the performance of the contract. In this case, the contract the university signed with the teacher and the faculty handbook provided are both the essential offer and acceptance acts in the conclusion of the contract, which has fully proved that the contract between both parties had taken effect. In addition, Board of Trustees’ approval belongs to the duty university should comply with in the future which the contract stipulated, not the condition of the formation of Contract.