Taylor v. State University
The petitioner appealed a Supreme Court judgment that dismissed her CPLR article 78 petition. She sought to annul the determination of respondents, State University of New York, Upstate Medical University, to terminate her probationary employment. The Appellate Division unanimously affirmed the lower court's judgment. The court reiterated that probationary civil service employees can be dismissed for nearly any or no reason, without a right to challenge, absent a showing of bad faith or an improper reason. The burden of proving such bad faith rests with the employee, and mere assertion is insufficient to meet this burden. The court concluded the petitioner failed to sustain this burden and found the termination conformed to applicable regulations, specifically 4 NYCRR 4.5 [b] [5].