In a fractured decision, an en banc panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reinstated a former University of Arizona student’s Title IX lawsuit against the university. Vacating a divided three-judge panel’s...more
On January 25, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court order in Brown v. State of Arizona et al., granting the University of Arizona summary judgment to dismiss Title IX claims asserted against the...more
On January 11, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issued a precedential decision in Hall v. Millersville University, holding for the first time that colleges and universities may face damages liability under...more
In a precedential decision issued on May 29, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit reversed the lower court’s dismissal of a complaint filed against a private university alleging discrimination under Title IX and...more
6/2/2020
/ Breach of Contract ,
Cross Examination ,
Dear Colleague Letter ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Title IX ,
Universities
After 17 months and more than 120,000 public comments, the Department has released its new regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. The regulations represent a seismic shift in process and...more
5/20/2020
/ Colleges ,
Department of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
New Regulations ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Universities
On May 6, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) made public its long-anticipated regulations under Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, which prohibits sex discrimination in most education programs and...more
5/11/2020
/ Colleges ,
Department of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Title IX ,
Universities
On March 11, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued a decision highlighting the difficult situation institutions of higher education face in sexual misconduct matters when balancing a complainant’s interest in...more
On December 12, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued its decision in Kollaritsch v. Michigan State University Board of Trustees, holding that, in order to be liable for deliberate indifference under Title...more
12/17/2019
/ Complaint Procedures ,
Educational Institutions ,
Evidence ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Rape ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX
On December 12, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued its decision in Kollaritsch v. Michigan State University Board of Trustees, holding that, in order to be liable for deliberate indifference under Title...more
12/16/2019
/ Appeals ,
Colleges ,
Damages ,
Educational Institutions ,
Liability ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Universities
In the past year, allegations of sexual misconduct have regularly made headlines in top news outlets across the United States. The #MeToo movement has encouraged many individuals to make public the details of sometimes...more
7/9/2018
/ #MeToo ,
Actual Malice ,
Claims Made Policy ,
Commercial Insurance Policies ,
Common Law Privilege ,
Defamation ,
Fair Report Privilege ,
First Amendment ,
Journalists ,
Media Relations ,
News Stories ,
Newspapers ,
Occurrence ,
Online Magazines ,
Public Figures ,
Public Officials ,
Republication ,
Reputational Injury ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment
The Chronicle of Higher Education recently reported that, on June 8, 2017, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) distributed an internal memo containing new guidance that will provide regional offices...more
On February 22, the U.S. Department of Education issued its first Dear Colleague Letter guidance of the new administration, rescinding the transgender rights guidance that the Obama administration issued last summer. The...more
3/3/2017
/ Dear Colleague Letter ,
Department of Education ,
Discrimination ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
OCR ,
School Restrooms ,
Secretary of Education ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title IX ,
Transgender ,
Trump Administration