First-ever Williams enforcement victory means districts cannot ignore their obligations to students—they must exhaust every option before claiming compliance is “impossible”

San Francisco—Today the California First District Court of Appeal ruled in favor of students, parents, and educators in Cleare v. West Contra Costa Unified School District—the first-ever lawsuit filed to enforce the landmark Williams v. California settlement. The court found that WCCUSD failed to carry its burden of demonstrating it had exhausted all available options to fill teacher vacancies. The Williams guarantee, of a qualified teacher in every classroom, remains in full force.

The ruling reverses a 2024 Contra Costa Superior Court decision that had excused the district’s illegal staffing practices on the grounds that a statewide teacher shortage made compliance “impossible.” The appeals court rejected that reasoning, making clear that districts cannot simply throw up their hands—they must show they have done everything available to them before claiming they cannot comply with the law.

“The WCCUSD community has faced negligence for too long. By breaking the law, the district has stolen educational opportunities for thousands of children,”  said Sam Cleare, lead plaintiff and educator in WCCUSD. “This is a crucial step to holding our district leadership accountable and providing every child everywhere with an educator in the classroom.”

The case was filed in July 2024 by Public Advocates, a 55-year-old civil rights law firm and a lead counsel on the Williams case, and pro bono counsel Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP, on behalf of six educators, parents, and staff at Stege Elementary, Helms Middle School, and John F. Kennedy High School. Students at these schools—who are disproportionately Black, Latinx, and from lower wealth families—had endured years of rotating uncertified substitutes while the district maintained dozens of fully credentialed teachers in non-classroom assignments and refused to pursue other available certification options, including as a last resort state waivers.

“This ruling is a victory not just for the students in West Contra Costa Unified, but for every student in California who is owed a qualified teacher,” said Karissa Provenza, Staff Attorney at Public Advocates. “For over two years, I watched the district consistently fail its most marginalized students with little regard—and then kick the can down the road and ask to be excused for it. Today the court agreed that we can’t wait,  ‘delay is not a real option when the quality of children’s education is at issue.’”

“Our firm is privileged to be able to support Public Advocates in achieving this consequential victory,” said Dane Shikman, a partner at Munger, Tolles & Olson, who argued the case in the trial court. “Every child, no matter their background or ZIP code, deserves great teachers—and we are thrilled to help make that happen for more kids across California.”

The decision has statewide significance. In its ruling, the court was unequivocal: “The importance of public education is beyond question—or need of justification. Central to its function is the belief that knowledge should be imparted by qualified instructors.” No other California school district had taken the position that a teacher shortage excuses years of illegal staffing practices. A ruling in WCCUSD’s favor would have opened the door for districts across the state to abandon California’s more than 20-year Williams guarantee. Instead, today’s ruling makes clear: the promise of a single, year-long qualified teacher in every classroom means something.

“For 20 years, Williams has meant that certain things are non-negotiable, including providing a permanent qualified teacher in every classroom,” said John Affeldt, Managing Attorney at Public Advocates, who argued the appeal and was one of the plaintiffs’ attorneys in the original Williams case. “The Court made clear today that districts cannot simply claim impossibility and turn their back on students. They must exhaust every option available to them. Here, the District underutilized its capacity to reassign fully credentialed teachers from non-teaching positions, didn’t pursue various emergency permit options and refused even trying to seek state-approved waivers. Given its woeful efforts, thankfully, the District’s request for a permission slip to break the law has been denied.” 

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About Public Advocates Inc.
Public Advocates Inc. is a nonprofit law firm and advocacy organization that challenges the systemic causes of poverty and racial discrimination by strengthening community voices in public policy and achieving tangible legal victories advancing education, housing, transportation equity, and climate justice.

About Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP
Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP is a law firm with offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. The firm represents clients in a broad range of complex and high-profile matters, and its culture is defined by a strong commitment to pro bono service..