This year, 2008, was supposed to be the “year of education,” but budget shortfalls suggest that instead of our schools being strengthened, they will face budget cuts.

The state’s education system is among the targets for massive budget cuts proposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. School districts all across the state are being faced with difficult choices in light of budget shortages.

Earlier this year, California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse released a report, titled “The Fourth ‘R’ of California’s School Districts: Ripped Off By Litigation,” on the cost of litigation for three of the state’s largest school districts: Los Angeles, San Diego and Elk Grove Unified. According to the report, in just one fiscal year, these districts spent more than $32 million on verdicts, settlements and outside counsel to defend themselves against lawsuits. With more than 1,000 school districts in the state, it’s clear that a full accounting of costs statewide would be astounding.

So, what do budget cuts and litigation have in common? Both take money out of our classrooms. Schools are the ones that suffer when money is spent for legal purposes rather than much-needed school supplies, infrastructure upgrades and teacher salaries.

Even among smaller school districts, like Napa Valley Unified, lawsuits take their toll. A lawsuit was filed by a student in Napa, claiming a middle school’s “no-logos, no-denim” dress code violated constitutional rights after a student was disciplined for wearing socks with the Winnie the Pooh “Tigger” character on them. The district was ordered to pay at least $95,000 in lawyers’ fees under the settlement reached with the families, in addition to paying for its own attorneys.

Napa Unified Superintendent John Glaser was quoted as saying, “We believe the plaintiffs have not engaged in any meaningful attempt to engage with us to resolve the issue and have taken steps to prematurely inflame the situation in an apparent attempt to increase their own costs, as well as the district’s in defending it.” Thus, the district decided to settle, rather than fight the lawsuit.

Although I applaud Glaser’s understanding that his time and resources were better spent in the classrooms, it demonstrates the bind that many school administrators are in when dealing with predatory lawsuits. The decision to settle is often easier and more cost effective than going to trial, but it still comes with a considerable cost, one that goes beyond just finances.

Instead of focusing on providing our children with high-quality education, teachers and school administrators are forced to defend themselves against everything from disputes over grades to film selection. This can lead to defensive teaching, where teachers’ and administrators’ actions are driven by the ever-present threat of litigation, rather than by the best interests of the students. If teachers are too scared to teach, and principals and administrators are wary of properly enforcing school rules for fear of liability, our children will pay the price.

When we send our children to school, we are entrusting their administrators, principals and teachers with an awesome responsibility: that of helping to shape our children into the adults they will become. In order to do this to the best of their ability, these professionals must have the community’s support.

People who are injured or wronged certainly deserve justice, but a quick look at the cost of lawsuits indicates that lawsuits are taking an enormous toll on our education system. Districts’ budgets already fall woefully short of the needs of our children and teachers; we cannot afford to let litigation drain our schools of any more much-needed resources. Our children deserve better. We must demand reform so that our education dollars go to classrooms, not courtrooms.

(Merchant lives in the Napa Valley. He is chairman of California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse.)