TRENTON, N.J. (Legal Newsline) - A New Jersey law dubbed “Pass the Trash” allowed a school board to pass along information about a teacher who resigned amid an investigation into sexually suggestive social-media posts, an appeals court ruled, rejecting the teacher’s argument she was protected by a confidentiality clause.
The plaintiff, identified only as A.B., resigned her position as a math teacher at Hackensack High School in 2013 after administrators discovered posts including “F@ck me I’m Irish” and “Women say Men Think with their Penis. Ladies, don’t be afraid to blow their minds.” A police officer confirmed they were accessible and read by students and A.B. quickly negotiated a resignation agreement, before the school board investigation was completed or a police investigation was officially opened.
In May 2019 the teacher was offered a job by the Clifton Board of Education. As part of the hiring process the board sent a sexual abuse disclosure information request to Hackensack as required under New Jersey statute 18A:6-7, or “Pass the Trash.” The Hackensack board returned it, saying she had been investigated and resigned as a result of an investigation into sexual misconduct.
The Clifton board rescinded the job offer and A.B. sued the Hackensack board, arguing it had violated a confidentiality agreement in her letter of resignation and seeking an injunction preventing further disclosure. A trial court dismissed her case and transferred it to an administrative board, which also rejected her complaint.
A.B. then appealed to the Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division, but fared no better there. In an Oct. 5 decision, the court said the plaintiff’s argument she had never been accused of breaking a law had no merit.
“We not address whether A.B., in fact, was involved in sexual misconduct,” the court ruled. The only thing that mattered was the Hackensack board responded to the questionnaire and answered accurately that she had been investigated.
The court also rejected her argument the confidentiality agreement should be enforced, because it was signed before the “Pass the Trash” law rendering such clauses unenforceable was passed.
“The legislature was intended to protect children,” the court concluded. “It would be illogical for the Legislature to have exempted a class of teachers because of a confidentiality clause in a settlement agreement.”