"The lawsuit dates back to October 2022, after the University of California officially changed the name of UC Hastings School of Law to UC Law San Francisco. The name change, which was done through state legislation, was undertaken as part of a national reckoning with the name of instutions and public spaces after figures with racist pasts. In the case of Serranus Hastings, it was his leadership of a 19th Century genocide of Indigenous Californians."
"The court without comment let stand a First District Court of Appeal ruling last year that rejected claims by alumni and descendants of namesake Serranus Hastings that the Legislature and the school's board of directors had no authority to remove Hastings' name. The unanimous appellate panel also found that the state was not bound by an 1878 law requiring the school to provide a seat on the board to the Hastings family in perpetuity"
"As Law.com reports, a further appeal to the California Supreme Court has also failed. The blog Above the Law suggests that the family will likely take their appeal all the way to the Supreme Court, who will likely tell them "to kick rocks." But given that the family could be looking at breach-of-contract damages from the state if they were to ultimately win, they appear to want to continue trying."
The University of California removed Serranus Hastings' name from its San Francisco law school after evidence of his leadership in a 19th-century genocide of Indigenous Californians. Hastings' descendants filed a lawsuit in October 2022 challenging the name change enacted by state legislation. A San Francisco court attempted to dismiss the suit in February 2024. The First District Court of Appeal ruled that the Legislature and the school's board had authority to remove the name and were not bound by an 1878 law granting the family perpetual board representation. The California Supreme Court declined review, and the family indicates intent to pursue further appeals and possible damages claims.
Read at sfist.com
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