Litigation Pursuant to Connecticut General Statute 5-141d, the Attorney General represents State officials and employees sued in their individual capacities regarding actions taken in the discharge of their duties and within the scope of their employment that are not wilful or wanton. Q.  Might I be held personally liable for injuries I may cause while employed with the University of Connecticut? A.  Generally speaking, if an employee is acting within the scope of her/his employment and in good faith, [s]he will be defended and indemnified by the State of Connecticut for injury or damages caused to others. Determinations in this regard are made by the Office of the Attorney General, in consultation with the University of Connecticut. Q.  If I were sued as a University employee, would I be provided with legal representation? A.  Generally speaking, if you are a State System employee named as a defendant in a claim or lawsuit arising out of your state conduct, you may receive legal representation by this office, if it is clear that you were acting in good faith. Determinations concerning whether an employee is acting within the scope of his or her employment and in good faith are made by the Attorney General's Office, in consultation with the University of Connecticut. Q.  If I am sued in my capacity as a University volunteer, would I be provided with legal representation? A.  Generally, duly authorized volunteers are treated as employees as set forth above. Q.  Are students eligible for legal defense under the program? A.  Students are generally not eligible for either legal defense or indemnification unless they are acting as duly authorized volunteers or employees of the University, or are part of the student judicial process. What if You Are Sued? The Attorney-Client Privlege Tips to Avoid Litigation What if You Are Sued? If you are named as a defendant in a summons/lawsuit, you must immediately fax or deliver the paperwork to this office and we will schedule a meeting for all parties. We will review the documents and consult with the University administration. If this office determines that your actions were not wanton, reckless or malicious and were within the scope of your employment, we will offer to represent you in this matter, or you may chose to obtain your own legal counsel at your expense. Q. What do I do if I am served with a claim or lawsuit or, if I receive a threat of litigation concerning my University role? A. Immediately contact your direct supervisor and this office, providing any pertinent documents you may have. If the person is threatening a grievance and not a lawsuit, notify your supervisor and refer the matter to the appropriate administrative office immediately. Do not respond to any correspondence from the complainant or an attorney without first contacting this office. Finally, do not discuss the matter with anyone other than your supervisor - not your friends, family, the media and especially not the person threatening suit. Q. How should I Prepare For A Meeting With the University Attorney's Office? A. Gather any pertinent documents, facsimiles, personal notes, calendar entries, repair records, brochures, agreements, photographs, e-mails, correspondence or anything else you may have that remotely pertains to the matter. Bring these documents to your first meeting and write down any of your questions or concerns as well. If you have questions about whether any evidence might be relevant, please discuss this with the attorney. Don't withhold any information from your attorney, as failure to disclose information could be subject to administrative sanctions or contempt of court, so bring anything with you that you feel may be pertinent. Q. What happens after the attorney files an appearance on my behalf? A. After an appearance is filed, the attorneys will begin to receive documents from the opposing party, as well as court or agency-imposed deadlines. You should be prepared to make yourself available to your attorneys whenever needed, keeping in mind that you are not their only client and they aren't always given much time to respond. Therefore, be sure to provide this office with all your current contact information, including any sabbatic or vacation phones, mail and e-mail addresses, as well as home, office and cell phone numbers. Q. If I am being sued in my "individual capacity" and/or in my "official capacity" as a State employee, will your office defend me? A. Whether you are sued individually or in your official capacity as a State employee does not affect your right for legal representation by this office at the expense of the State. However, if there is any conflict of interest between your defense and the University, either at the beginning of litigation, or during, you will be notified, so you may hire a private attorney to represent you at your own cost. Q. What do I do if someone (an investigator, or a representative of the opposing party) contacts me regarding this matter? A. Do not respond. You may refer them to this office. Back to list of concerns The Attorney-Client Privlege The attorney-client privilege was originally intended to encourage open communication between a client and attorney, and to prevent the attorney from being compelled to testify against the client in an effort to protect the content of their private communications regarding a legal matter. This privilege may extend to agents of either the client or the lawyer who facilitate the communication (e.g., paralegals, legal administrative assistants or legal secretaries). The attorney-client privilege may, however, be subject to waiver when the content of a confidential communication is disclosed to a third person, even if this disclosure is inadvertent (i.e. copying someone on an e-mail or letter). A waiver can also occur when the communication takes place in public or during a meeting. Therefore, conversations held in a meeting are not automatically protected, merely because a lawyer may be present. In addition, documents shared with an attorney are not automatically considered "privileged" ones. This includes documents or correspondence forwarded to an attorney for any purpose other than legal advice. If you have any questions regarding privileged communications, please contact one of the attorneys by phone. Back to list of concerns Tips to Avoid Litigation While we cannot prevent lawsuits, we can offer advice to help avoid litigation or, assist in the University's defense: Read Your Manuals! Know the University By-Laws, Policies and Procedures that pertain to your Department. Provide information to your staff annually and meet with them as needed to answer questions or concerns. If you can't answer a question concerning University policy, go directly to your supervisor. See the Department of Human Resources Guide to Manuals and Handbooks at http://www.hr.uconn.edu/manuals.html. Expand Your Knowledge!  Take advantage of all opportunities for continuing education and training in the policies and procedures that affect your area of employment for yourself and your staff. See the Department of Human Resources' Training and Development section of their web page at: http://www.training.uconn.edu/. Be Safe!  Be mindful of any potential hazards in your Department and review all safety and health procedures. Conduct frequent inspections and immediately report all potentially unsafe conditions to your supervisor or to the appropriate office (Public Safety, Facilities Operations or Environmental Health and Safety). For more information, see the web page of the University's Environmental Health and Safety Department at: http://www.ehs.uconn.edu Document . . Document . . Document!  When writing personnel letters, contracts, agreements, memos, e-mails, or any other documents, be clear, consistent and concise, quoting and attaching the specific policy you reference when possible. Also be sure to save any and all employee-related materials (even documents for former employees). Keep in mind that if there is any litigation, contemporaneous written documents will be considered more credible evidence than your statements. ALWAYS Prepare Performance Evaluations Judiciously and Annually!  Supervisors must prepare written evaluations for all employees annually, once their probationary periods have passed. Be sure to meet with each employee privately, giving them adequate time for positive feedback as appropriate, review of both their job description and standards for their performance, as well as discussion of any performance deficiencies and methods for overcoming them. Provide specific guidelines for performance expectations for all employees and clearly identify any changes in job responsibility. If there are changes, contact the Department of Human Resources to revise the employee's job description. Finally, keep detailed records of all meetings and discussions with each employee regarding their performance. It is absolutely critical that annual evaluations contain an accurate and detailed written description of each employee's performance and behavior in comparison to their job requirements and expectations. If there are any questions concerning the proper preparation of annual evaluations, do not hesitate to contact either the Department of Human Resources or the Attorney General's Office with any questions or concerns. Also, do not hesitate to use the University's Department of Human Resources trained staff as a resource before implementing any disciplinary measures. For further information, please go to the Department of Human Resources web page at: http://www.hr.uconn.edu/lrhome.html. Don't Throw It Out Until You Check It Out!  With respect to the disposal of University records, including employee files, all personnel records, including PTR files (whether maintained in the departments, in administrative offices or in the Department of Human Resources), are potentially "permanent" and subject to State records management statutes and regulations governing retention and disposition. Therefore, do not destroy any files regarding employees - even if they no longer work in your Department. Either return the records to Human Resources to merge with their official personnel file, or keep them in your Department. The University Archivist, Betsy Pittman, must be contacted prior to disposal of any University documents. She can answer all your questions regarding records retention. Please contact Ms. Pittman at (860) 486-4507, or e-mail her at betsy.pittman@uconn.edu. Ms. Pittman can also assist you by providing an information package, one-on-one or group training sessions, and storage space for scheduled records. For further information, refer to the University's Records Management Program, as depicted on the Library's web page at: http://www.lib.uconn.edu/DoddCenter/ASC/pages/records/UCRM.htm. ETHICS!  It is extremely important all State employees understand that as representatives of the State, their actions are held to the standards set by the Code of Ethics for Public Officials and State Employees. This Code is intended to prevent employees from using their public position for any personal financial gain. The provisions of Connecticut General Statutes §§ 1-84 through 1-86 govern many of these activities, which include certain types of outside employment, unauthorized acceptance of honoraria, use of State positions for financial gain and acceptance of gifts by State employees from anyone with whom they do business. For specific guidance, please review the Guide to the Code of Ethics at: http://www.audit.uconn.edu/doc/codeofethics.pdf Back to list of concerns CLAIMS AGAINST UCONN FOR ALLEGED LOSSES As a State institution, claims by third parties against UConn are barred by the Doctrine of Sovereign Immunity and must be filed with the Connecticut Office of the Claims Commissioner.  This Office provides helpful information on its website, including the procedure for filing a claim.  Visit their website at: State of Connecticut Office of Claims Commissioner Home Page