By attorney Siobhan Schneider
*Closed session to evaluate professional competency pursuant to Iowa Code Section 21.5(1)(i) no longer requires an affirmative fact-finding on the part of the governmental body
On November 25, 2025 , the Iowa Supreme Court issued a decision in Teig v. Hart interpreting Iowa Code Section 21.5(1)(i), the provision of the Iowa Open Meetings law which allows a governmental body to go into closed session to “evaluate the professional competency of an individual whose appointment, hiring, performance, or discharge is being considered when necessary to prevent needless and irreparable injury to that individual’s reputation and that individual requests a closed session.” This case was on further review to the Iowa Supreme Court following a Court of Appeals decision filed January 9, 2025.
The Court of Appeals previously held that, in order to hold a closed session under 21.5(1)(i), a governmental body must make an evidentiary finding indicating that this type of closed session is “necessary to prevent needless and irreparable injury” to the individual who has requested the closed session. After that decision, governmental bodies were advised to make an evidentiary record of the need to hold a closed session to prevent needless and irreparable injury to the individual’s reputation who requested the closed session. This meant there needed to be an assessment of the existence of potentially damaging or negative information about the individual in question.
The Iowa Supreme Court’s decision vacates the prior decision of the Court of Appeals. In the opinion, the Supreme Court states, “[i]n applying the Open Meetings Act, we seek to avoid interpretations that would produce strained, impractical or absurd results. We think the court of appeals’ reasoning leads to such a result.” Following this decision, governmental bodies no longer have to make an evidence-based determination that a closed session to evaluate the professional competency of an individual, when that individual has requested a closed session, is necessary to prevent needless and irreparable harm to the individual’s reputation. Instead, a governmental body may assume that when an individual requests a closed session under Iowa Code 21.5(1)(i), it is necessary to protect against harm to that individual’s reputation.
Below are suggested procedures for governmental bodies to implement when considering going into closed session under Iowa Code 21.5(1)(i). However, because these types of situations are often dynamic and fact specific, consultation with legal counsel is recommended to avoid any unintended compliance issues.
Suggested Procedures:
- Obtain the request in writing to hold a closed session under Iowa Code 21.5(1)(i) from the individual being interviewed or evaluated.
- Ask that the individual include in the written request that it is being made to prevent needless and irreparable injury to the individual’s reputation.
- At the start of the session, note on the record that the request was made by the individual being interviewed or evaluated.
- Maintain a copy of the written request with the sealed closed session records and for the length of time the governmental body maintains the recording and minutes of the closed session.
[1] The Opinion was subsequently amended by the Iowa Supreme Court on December 4, 2025.
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