This legal memorandum provides an overview of the growing body of legislation and litigation concerning reduction in force (RIF). The focus of the article is the suspension or dismissal of teachers for reasons unrelated to their competence or behavior. Cases concerning other professional personnel such as principals, or other staffing strategies such as demotion, are included only as they relate to this primary focus. State statutes constitute the primary source of law relating to RIF. A tabular analysis of the relevant statutory provisions of the 50 states is provided. A majority of states has one or more statutory provisions directly applicable to RIF. These statutory provisions and related case law are discussed in terms of three categories: reasons for RIF, order for release, and order for recall. (Author/MLF)