Holland & Knight previously explained how a Kansas federal district court's unique injunction against the U.S. Department of Education's (Department) enforcement of the 2024 Title IX regulations impacted schools nationwide....more
Four years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, tuition refund class actions against universities have not slowed down. This Holland & Knight alert considers two recent court cases that will impact litigation strategy...more
3/27/2024
/ Appeals ,
Class Action ,
Colleges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Marketing ,
Refunds ,
Remote Learning ,
Students ,
Summary Judgment ,
Tuition ,
Universities
The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) published on April 6, 2023, a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) about sex-related criteria used to limit or deny a student's ability to participate in...more
4/24/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
College Athletes ,
Colleges ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
Multi-Factor Test ,
NCAA ,
NPRM ,
OCR ,
Public Schools ,
Sports ,
Student Athletes ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender ,
Universities
Signed into law back in January 2021, the state's landmark Campus Sexual Violence Act (Act) took effect Aug. 1, 2021, and new regulations from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education (DHE) will take effect Aug. 13....more
8/12/2021
/ Clery Act ,
Colleges ,
Educational Institutions ,
Governor Baker ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
New Legislation ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Training Requirements ,
Universities
Institutions of higher education (IHEs) that received emergency relief funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the CARES Act) must report certain designated information to the U.S. Secretary of...more
5/12/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Colleges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Federal Grants ,
Financial Stimulus ,
New Guidance ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Students ,
Universities
Culminating two years of negotiated rulemaking, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) published on Aug. 30, 2019, new "Institutional Accountability" regulations that apply to all federal student loans disbursed...more
11/6/2019
/ Accreditation ,
Arbitration ,
Borrower Defense Rule ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Colleges ,
Department of Education ,
Federal Student Loans ,
Financial Responsibility Standards ,
Misrepresentation ,
New Regulations ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Student Loans ,
Students ,
Universities
• The U.S. Department of Education rescinded two major Office for Civil Rights guidance documents interpreting the application of Title IX to reports of sexual misconduct.
• Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos stated that...more
10/9/2017
/ Adjudicatory Process ,
Colleges ,
Dear Colleague Letter ,
Department of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Interim Rule ,
Investigations ,
New Guidance ,
New Regulations ,
Notice and Comment ,
Notice Requirements ,
Secretary of Education ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Standard of Review ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Universities
• Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos has advised that the U.S. Department of Education intends to revise its guidance on the application of Title IX to reports of sexual misconduct on college and university campuses.
• DeVos...more
9/12/2017
/ Colleges ,
Department of Education ,
Due Process ,
Notice and Comment ,
Obama Administration ,
OCR ,
Public Comment ,
Secretary of Education ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Conduct ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Trump Administration ,
Universities
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently ruled in Barbuto v. Advantage Sales and Marketing, LLC that an employee's use of medical marijuana to treat a qualified disability may be a reasonable accommodation under...more
8/10/2017
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Colleges ,
Controlled Substances ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Drug-Free Workplace Act ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Funding ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Financial Aid ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Interactive Process ,
MA Supreme Judicial Court ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Popular ,
Public Schools ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
School Districts ,
School Policies ,
State Labor Laws ,
Students ,
Universities
Changing course on complaints involving transgender students, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently issued new field instructions to its regional staff excluding discrimination claims based...more
6/26/2017
/ Bullying ,
Colleges ,
Complaint Procedures ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
OCR ,
Rescission ,
Rollbacks ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Stereotyping ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender ,
Trump Administration ,
Universities
Reversing the practice under the Obama Administration, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has just issued new internal guidance changing how regional OCR offices will investigate discrimination...more
6/20/2017
/ Class Action ,
Complaint Procedures ,
Department of Education ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Educational Institutions ,
OCR ,
Race Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Students ,
Transgender ,
Trump Administration
Two divisions of the federal government have weighed in on the recent legal controversies surrounding accommodations for transgender students. The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the U.S....more
5/18/2016
/ Dear Colleague Letter ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Educational Institutions ,
FERPA ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
OCR ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender