Indemnification

Board Policy 7.003

Delta College will support its trustees, officers, faculty, and staff when acting in the good faith performance of assigned duties on behalf of the College. This policy also applies to students while engaged in approved academic programs and volunteers who are performing services in good faith for the College with prior written approval of the appropriate College official. Authority for decisions about the application or revocation of indemnification rests with the President, in his or her absolute discretion, except when such decisions involve indemnification of the President or individual Trustees. In such situations, decisions about the application or revocation or indemnification rests with the non-conflicted members of the Board of Trustees, in its absolute discretion. If these non-conflicted members do not constitute a quorum, then the Board shall refer the question to outside counsel selected by the Board. This counsel shall not be involved in the action, suit or proceeding. Upon a recommendation by outside counsel, the Board may take action.

The College will defend, save harmless, and indemnify such persons against any suit or proceeding, wherever brought, premised upon the fact that they were a member of the Board or an officer, employee, student, or volunteer of the College. The indemnity extends to expenses including attorney fees, judgments, fines, and amounts paid in settlement, actually and reasonably incurred, and with respect to any criminal action or proceeding where a reasonable person would have had no reasonable cause to believe that their conduct was unlawful. The College shall have sole authority over litigation and settlement strategies and decisions for any suit or proceeding for which the College is providing legal defense, representation and indemnification to the person. In proceedings in which both the College and an employee are parties, the College shall have the sole discretion to determine when a conflict of interest exists between the College and the employee such that the College shall provide separate representation of the employee.

As a condition of indemnification, the trustee, officer, employee, student, or volunteer must cooperate fully on a continuous basis with the College’s legal counsel. Persons may, at their own expense, retain their own legal counsel rather than avail themselves of this policy.  In such a situation, the College will not indemnify the person for any settlement, judgment, or expense incurred. This policy does not apply to a person’s involvement in internal College proceedings or to a person’s suit or other action against Delta College. The College reserves the right to revoke its initial decision(s) to defend and indemnify a person based upon information received subsequent to that decision.

Board Action 5378 – April 6, 2021