Florida Atlantic University Board of Trustees v. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute Foundation, Inc.
The Florida Supreme Court held that neither the 2018 legislative mandate requiring university trustee approval of all direct-support organization (DSO) board appointments nor a Board of Governors regulation requiring trustee approval of DSO budgets unconstitutionally impaired the parties' memorandum of understanding under the Florida Constitution's contracts clause.
Key facts
- In 2007, the Foundation entered an MOU to become a university direct-support organization affiliated with FAU after experiencing financial trouble; the MOU gave FAU only 2 board appointees and gave the Foundation 'sole discretion' over distributions.
- In 2009, the Board of Governors amended Regulation 9.011 to require that DSO budgets be approved by the affiliated university's board of trustees, expanding oversight beyond the MOU's terms.
- +2 more key facts with a free trial
Holdings
- A party waives its objection to noncompliance with Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.071 when it affirmatively requested the trial court to resolve the constitutional challenge.
- +2 more holdings with a free trial
Read the full opinion, holdings & search — free for 30 days
The full opinion PDF, the rules the court applied, our significance analysis, the background facts, and full-text search across every tracked Florida decision — in your hands.
- Search every tracked Florida decision in seconds
- Save, tag & file the cases that matter into your own library
- Read the full plain-English analysis and holdings
Not ready to sign up? Get the free Friday digest — the week's key Florida decisions by email, no login required.
Florida Court Tracker provides summaries of publicly available court opinions for informational and research purposes only. This is not legal advice and does not create an attorney–client relationship. Always verify holdings against the official opinion.