Present and emerging legal principles and procedures are affecting the internal ordering of colleges and are particularly relevant to growing student demands for a larger share in decision making. Judicial resolution of student-institutional relationships is, however, largely inappropriate and it is up to the university to establish procedures that take into account legitimate student claims. Reinforced by prevailing social attitudes, institutions have assumed they have unlimited power to control the academic program and few limits on their power to control the noncurricular activities of students. Courts have largely upheld college authority and regarded the power to discipline students as beyond judicial control. Several developments are contributing to a more receptive attitude by the courts toward those challenging institutional authority--the move to achieve equal rights for all, wider acceptance of full freedom of expression under the first amendment, a tendency to examine more critically the behavior of powerful private associations, and an upsurge in demands for wider participation in decision-making processes. There will probably be a gradual reformulation in laws concerning student-university relationships but whatever is decided within the academic community will most influence judges. Due process and equal protection have many applications, as do the right of privacy and freedoms of the first amendment. Institutions should consider these rights and the changing attitudes of courts and adopt clear and consistent rules. (JS)