CHOICE: A Decision-Making
Strategy for University Lawyers
and Administrators
Nancy Tribbensee, Deputy General
Counsel, Arizona State University
[email protected]
Communication regarding mission or goal
History of similar policy and legal decisions
Options or alternative ways to achieve goals
Information gathering
Consultation with interested parties
Evaluation
Communication regarding
mission or goal
• Identify goals
• Communicate to interested parties
History of similar policy and
legal decisions
• Past practice
• Past policy
• Legal decisions
Options or alternative ways to
achieve goals
• Benefits
• Costs
Information Gathering
• Laws
• Policies
• Insurance
Consultation with interested
parties
• On campus
• Off campus
Evaluation
Interview Questions
1.Violence on the high school and postsecondary campus has gained national
attention over the past few years. Are you
familiar with the different incidents across the
country?
2. In reading about the violence on other
campuses, are you concerned about ASU?
3. Can you tell me a bit about your interactions
with students at ASU?
4. Have you adjusted your normal
processes/interactions based on the accounts of
campus violence or potential liability?
5. If not, do you feel your department should
examine your current interactions?
6. If so, do you feel you are maintaining
sufficient student interaction/services?
7. How would you react if the attorneys told you
to decrease your interactions with students to
avoid liability? How would this impact your
ability to do your job the way you think it
should be done?
8. How would you react if the attorneys told you
to increase your involvement in student
activities to avoid liability? How would this
impact our ability to do your job the way you
thing it should be done?
9. If the General Counsel’s office were to issue
guidelines regarding student interaction to
minimize liability, would you follow them
even if they were significantly different from
your normal practices?
10. Do you believe student service would suffer
if such guidelines were implemented?