Opinion ID: 2586655
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The District Court Properly Granted Summary Judgment to the School District on the Breach of Contract Claim

Text: When interpreting a contract, this Court begins with the document's language. Cristo Viene Pentecostal Church v. Paz, 144 Idaho 304, 308, 160 P.3d 743, 747 (2007). In the absence of ambiguity, the document must be construed in its plain, ordinary and proper sense, according to the meaning derived from the plain wording of the instrument. C & G, Inc. v. Rule, 135 Idaho 763, 765, 25 P.3d 76, 78 (2001). Interpreting an unambiguous contract and determining whether there has been a violation of that contract is an issue of law subject to free review. Opportunity, L.L.C. v. Ossewarde, 136 Idaho 602, 605-06, 38 P.3d 1258, 1261-62 (2002). A contract term is ambiguous when there are two different reasonable interpretations or the language is nonsensical. Swanson v. Beco Constr. Co., 145 Idaho 59, 62, 175 P.3d 748, 751 (2007). Whether a contract is ambiguous is a question of law, but interpreting an ambiguous term is an issue of fact. Bakker v. Thunder Spring-Wareham, L.L.C., 141 Idaho 185, 190, 108 P.3d 332, 337 (2005) (quotation omitted). The Master Agreement describes several different types of leave available to teachers. Section 10.5 of the Master Agreement specifically addresses professional leave, and provides: Attendance at educational meetings or visiting other schools is permitted at full pay if such absence is approved by the Principal. If any certificated personnel wishes [sic] to be absent from duty for a brief period to attend a professional meeting, to visit schools, or otherwise pursue professional development, a written request for approval of such absence should be signed by the Principal and filed in the Superintendent's office a least two (2) days prior to the first day of anticipated absence. Professional leave is not to exceed two (2) days per year and is non-cumulative. The Principal may make exceptions on the number of days allowed when necessary. Section 15.1 requires the parties to establish a salary schedule that will [s]timulate professional growth while in service, and allows teachers to earn a higher salary if they receive certain amounts of academic credit in any field of study, both within and outside of education. Here, the parties do not dispute the underlying facts, and both contend the contract language is unambiguous. This case therefore hinges on an issue of law: the legal effect of the professional-leave terms in the Master Agreement. See Taylor v. Just, 138 Idaho 137, 140, 59 P.3d 308, 311 (2002) (stating that courts should apply the plain meaning of the terms if they are clear and unambiguous). Even though the plain text of the Master Agreement seems to impart unfettered discretion to the principal in authorizing professional leave, this Court implies a covenant of good faith and fair dealing into all contracts. Lettunich v. Key Bank Nat'l Ass'n, 141 Idaho 362, 368, 109 P.3d 1104, 1110 (2005); Taylor v. Browning, 129 Idaho 483, 490, 927 P.2d 873, 880 (1996). This doctrine applies to all employment relationships, including those between a public school teacher and a school district. Smith v. Meridian Joint Sch. Dist., 128 Idaho 714, 721, 918 P.2d 583, 590 (1996); Mitchell v. Zilog, Inc., 125 Idaho 709, 715, 874 P.2d 520, 526 (1994). Any action by either party which violates, nullifies or significantly impairs any benefit of the employment contract is a violation of the implied-in-law covenant. Metcalf v. Intermountain Gas Co., 116 Idaho 622, 627, 778 P.2d 744, 749 (1989). This is an objective determination of whether the parties have acted in good faith in terms of enforcing the contractual provisions, an inquiry wholly independent of the employer's subjective intent. Jenkins v. Boise Cascade Corp., 141 Idaho 233, 243, 108 P.3d 380, 390 (2005) (citing Metcalf, 116 Idaho at 627, 778 P.2d at 749). However, such a covenant is only implied if it is compatible with the terms the parties agreed to. Idaho Power Co. v. Cogeneration, Inc., 134 Idaho 738, 750, 9 P.3d 1204, 1216 (2000). The plain meaning of the Master Agreement requires a teacher seeking professional leave to first obtain the principal's written approval. Since there is no language to the contrary, the law places an implied duty of good faith and fairness on the principal and the School District when withholding permission to take professional leave. As Appellants conceded during oral argument, there was no indication of bad faith on the School District's part. Section 10.5 of the Master Agreement states that teachers may take professional leave to attend a professional meeting, to visit schools, or otherwise pursue professional development only after obtaining the principal's approval. This provision nowhere conveys an entitlement to take professional leave. Instead, it vests the School District with discretion in permitting teachers to take up to two days of leave and, so long as it does so in good faith, the authority to deny such leave. According to his contract with the School District, Richards is an Elementary/Secondary Music Teacher, but he requested professional leave to defend a Master's Degree in Educational Administration. This program is not pedagogical but instead prepares students to be principals, superintendents, and other administrators. The principal and the School District could have in good faith interpreted the contract language as permitting leave only for activity within the teacher's particular academic area, rather than within the education field generally. [1] Appellants nonetheless maintain that this Court must broadly interpret the term professional development to include Richards's pursuit of his degree because the salary provisions in § 15.1 of the Master Agreement reward teachers with pay increases for earning academic credits in any discipline, even those outside of education. The purpose of these provisions, according to the Master Agreement, is to [s]timulate professional growth. Even if professional development and professional growth are intended to bear the same meaning, the salary provisions do not help clarify the professional-leave provision because they permit any credits in any field of study to advance a teacher's salary. It would seem that the School District would not have to provide paid leave to teachers pursuing degrees in fields wholly unrelated to teaching or education, such as engineering, law, or medicine. No terms anywhere in the contract require the school to provide professional leave to pursue academic credit in just any program. For these reasons, the district court correctly granted summary judgment in favor of the School District.