Board of Regents of State Colleges v. Roth
United States Supreme Court
408 U.S. 564 (1972)
David Roth (plaintiff) was hired as an assistant professor at a Wisconsin state university for a fixed one-year term. At year's end, the university declined to rehire him, giving no reason and no hearing. Under Wisconsin law, only professors with four consecutive years of employment gained tenure rights; newer teachers like Roth had no right to employment beyond their current appointment. Roth sued the Board of Regents (defendant), claiming the lack of notice and a hearing violated procedural due process. The district court and court of appeals agreed with Roth, and the university sought certiorari.
Whether procedural due process protects a person's interest in a benefit when that person has established only an abstract need or desire for the benefit rather than a legitimate claim of entitlement to it.