Civil Rights › Education Law › Art, Entertainment & Sports Law

Wrongful Termination Suit Filed in Rutgers Basketball Scandal

Former basketball assistant Eric Murdock has filed a wrongful termination suit against Rutgers University amid the fallout following the disclosure of head coach Mike Rice’s abusive behavior toward the players. ...more

New OCR Guidance Lays Out School District Responsibilities To Serve Students With Disabilities In Athletics

On January 25, 2013, the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education (OCR) issued a “Dear Colleague Letter” instructing school districts on their responsibilities to serve students with disabilities in...more

IHSA Under Pressure To Provide Accommodations To Student Athletes With Disabilities

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act provides that “No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States … shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be...more

Three Point Shot - January 2013

In This Issue: - Take Me Out To the Ball Game, But Keep Me Away From the Flying Hotdogs - Full Court Press Gets Young Women the Right to Play AND Be Cheered - Will Dorsett be able to “Heisman” SER Media?...more

OCR Issues "Dear Colleague Letter" Addressing Equal Opportunities in Athletic Programs for Students With Disabilities

A "Dear Colleague Letter" just issued by the Department of Education Office of Civil Rights interpreting Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 clarifies that colleges and universities must provide disabled students...more

DOJ Releases Technical Assistance Regarding University's Settlement Of ADA Issues

On December 20, 2012, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it entered into an agreement with Lesley University to ensure that students with celiac disease and other food allergies can fully and equally enjoy the...more

The Department Of Education Requires That School Sports Be Open To The Disabled

Over 40 years ago, Title IX mandated that schools balance the resources allocated to men’s and women’s educational programs including extracurricular sports. The sweeping overhaul dramatically improved the athletic...more

Illinois Basketball Star’s Lawsuit For Unequal Treatment In Residency Dispute Can Proceed

A federal judge allowed claims of unequal treatment by a high school basketball player to proceed against his school district. The claims arose out of the student’s move from the attendance area of one high school within the...more

Competitive cheerleading? Not a sport.

Under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, colleges receiving federal funding must afford equal participation opportunities in varsity sports to male and female athletes. One way schools demonstrate their compliance...more

Competitive Cheerleading Not a “Sport” For Title IX Purposes

A federal appeals court has held that competitive cheerleading cannot be counted as a sport for Title IX purposes. Although the decision came in a lawsuit filed by a university coach and students, it has implications for...more

Second Circuit Says Cheerleading Isn’t a Sport

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that competitive cheerleading isn’t a sport. In doing so, the federal court of appeals upheld a 2010 lower court decision, Biediger v. Quinnipiac Univ., where a women’s volleyball...more

Biediger, et al., v. Quinnipiac University

Federal Appeals Court Upholds Ruling in Quinnipiac Title IX Case (Decision)

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed today that Quinnipiac University failed to provide equal athletic opportunities for women, agreeing point by point with a 2010 ruling by U.S. District Court Judge...more

The Summer Olympics and Celebrating 40 Years of Title IX

2012 marks the 40th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination in public education. Title IX provides that "no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from...more

Is a Male Entitled to Play on a Female Field Hockey Team?

Recently, Cynthia Augello, an Associate at Cullen and Dykman LLP was featured on CBS and asked about the situation of Keeling Pilaro, a 13-year-old boy who played on the Southampton School District’s all female field-hockey...more

Stephanie Biediger, et al vs. Quinnipiac University

Ruling and Order Granting Preliminary Injunction

In this important Title IX gender equity decision, Judge Stefan Underhill of the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut granted a preliminary injunction preventing Quinnipiac University from eliminating its...more