Can a public school discipline students for using pronouns that reflect a classmate’s sex assigned at birth, rather than their gender identity? According to the Sixth Circuit’s en banc decision issued November 6, 2025, the...more
11/10/2025
/ Compelled Speech ,
Discipline ,
En Banc Review ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Gender Identity ,
Public Schools ,
School Districts ,
School Policies ,
Student Speech ,
Viewpoint Discrimination
Can a political slogan be too vulgar for school, even if it never actually uses a bad word? That was the question before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in B.A. v. Tri County Area Schools (Oct. 14, 2025), a...more
A recent decision from the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit confirms public employers can consider certain employee speech on social media in making personnel decisions. ...more
9/29/2025
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
First Amendment ,
Internet Speech ,
Protected Activity ,
Public Employers ,
Retaliation ,
Social Media Policy ,
Social Networks ,
Title VII
As generative AI technology advances, the legal battles over the use of copyrighted materials for training these models are heating up. In the first wave of lawsuits the courts have diverged in their approach to fair use as a...more
Can a public school require students to engage with materials that conflict with their parents’ religious beliefs without offering an opt-out? In Mahmoud v. Taylor, the U.S. Supreme Court enjoined the Montgomery County public...more
7/1/2025
/ Constitutional Challenges ,
Educational Institutions ,
First Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
LGBTQ ,
Mahmoud v Taylor ,
Notice Requirements ,
Opt-In ,
Opt-Outs ,
Parental Rights ,
Public Schools ,
School Districts ,
School Policies ,
SCOTUS
Must a student with a disability prove that their school acted in “bad faith” to win a discrimination case? Until now, courts in some parts of the country said yes, requiring disabled students to meet a higher standard than...more
6/16/2025
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Bad Faith ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Evidentiary Standards ,
OCR ,
Public Schools ,
Rehabilitation Act ,
School Districts ,
School Policies ,
SCOTUS ,
Special Education ,
Students ,
Title II
On June 6, 2025, a U.S. District Judge in the Northern District of California approved the long-anticipated and landmark $2.576 billion settlement in House v. NCAA, transforming the landscape of college sports. ...more
6/11/2025
/ Antitrust Litigation ,
Antitrust Violations ,
College Athletes ,
Compensation ,
Name and Likeness ,
NCAA ,
Revenue Sharing ,
Settlement ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Student Athletes ,
Title IX
On April 24, 2025, the U.S. District Courts for the District of New Hampshire and the District of Maryland issued separate orders blocking enforcement of all, or large portions of, the Dear Colleague Letter (“DCL”) issued by...more
On March 20, 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order (“EO”) titled “Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities,” directing the Secretary of Education to undertake all...more
3/24/2025
/ Charter Schools ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Department of Education ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Funding ,
Federal Grants ,
IDEA ,
Public Schools ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Students ,
Title I ,
Trump Administration
On November 15, 2024, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas blocked the Department of Labor’s 2024 Rule that would have expanded entitlement to overtime wages for millions of American workers....more
11/20/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Final Rules ,
Highly Compensated Employees ,
Minimum Salary ,
Over-Time ,
Salaried Employees ,
Standard Duties Test ,
Threshold Requirements ,
Vacated ,
Wage and Hour ,
White-Collar Exemptions
Can a student harassed by another student bring a lawsuit against the school for allegedly creating a hostile environment under state law? On July 29, 2024, the Michigan Supreme Court answered no....more
The United States Department of Labor (“DOL”), Wage and Hour Division recently issued a Field Assistance Bulletin on Artificial Intelligence and Automated Systems in the Workplace under the Fair Labor Standards Act and Other...more
7/16/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Automated Decision Systems (ADS) ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Polygraph Protection Act (EPPA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Field Assistance Bulletins ,
Wage and Hour
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has ruled that the waiver of a State's immunity under Title V of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is unconstitutional. This ruling permits a State to defend a Title V...more
On April 19, 2024, the United States Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (“DOE”) issued its long-awaited and lengthy Final Title IX regulations (the “2024 Final Rule”). The 2024 Final Rule requires that all...more
Michigan’s new Prevailing Wage for State Projects Act (the “Act”) became effective on February 13, 2024, and is substantially similar to a prior statutory prevailing wage requirement which was repealed in 2018. ...more
On February 5, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Regional Director Laura Sacks ordered a representation election to be held to determine if the Dartmouth University Men’s Basketball team will be represented by the Service...more
On January 10, 2023, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published the final version of the Independent Contractor rule under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) proposed in October 2022. The rule will take effect on March 11,...more
Effective January 22, 2024, Michigan’s law on compulsory arbitration of public labor disputes will be officially amended to include police officers employed by higher education institutions....more
On November 22, 2023, Michigan Governor Gretchen E. Whitmer signed into law two bills (SB 395 & SB 396) reforming the teacher and school administrator evaluation processes at K-12 schools. The new legislation introduces...more
On November 15, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued a decision that underscores the importance of ensuring proper steps are taken when Title IX complaints are first received by a school for sexual...more
On October 30, 2023, President Biden issued an Executive Order, along with a summary Fact Sheet concerning the safe, secure, and trustworthy use of artificial intelligence (“AI”). The Order mandates various federal agencies...more
Up until now, employers have been able to use artificial intelligence (AI)-powered hiring and promotional tools without worry about compliance with AI-specific laws. On July 5, 2023, that changed. New York City passed Local...more
On June 8, 2023, the Michigan House of Representatives voted 100-7 to pass Senate Bill 90 (SB 90), known as the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act, which amends and expands the definition of...more
On April 6, 2023, the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking relating to Title IX, a federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in federally funded programs. 20 U.S.C....more
Can public school children with disabilities sue their schools for violations of the federal antidiscrimination statutes and collect compensatory damages before exhausting their administrative remedies under the Individuals...more
3/23/2023
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Due Process ,
Educational Institutions ,
Exhaustion Doctrine ,
IDEA ,
Public Schools ,
School Districts ,
SCOTUS ,
Special Education ,
Students