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Back in January, there was a bitter fight over the Department of Education's plan to shut down 19 schools that officials said were failing. The United Federation of Teachers, along with the NAACP, challenged the decision in court and won, preventing the city from closing them.

The city appealed the ruling, and both sides were back in court today to argue their cases in a state appeals court.

The teachers union has argued that the DOE broke a state law by not following new procedures put in place for closing schools. The procedures were part of a new state law reauthorizing mayoral control of the city's schools, which the city supported.

"What they are doing now, is attempting to renege. That's a hell of a lesson to give kids, that we the City of New York, we the Department of Education, our word isn't worth a damn," said UFT attorney Charles Moerdler.

The city says it did follow the law and that any small discrepancies should not bar the city from shutting down the schools. The city, for example, was required to notify certain groups about school closure hearings. In one case, the city says emails were sent out to a group, but they inadvertently did not receive them. The city says those people were nevertheless aware of the hearings and participated in them.

In a statement, a lawyer for the city said, "We appreciate the court's careful consideration of our argument. Requiring the Department of Education to keep failing schools open makes sense to no one and only fails our children further. We continue to believe that the Department of Education complied with notice and public hearing requirements."

The judges are expected to issue a decision in the matter at some point this summer, but it may not be for another several weeks.