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Equal Protection › Universities

The Equal Protection Clause is a section of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution that provides that "no state shall...deny to any citizen within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the... more +
The Equal Protection Clause is a section of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution that provides that "no state shall...deny to any citizen within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." Essentially, the Equal Protection Clause provides that the government must treat an individual the same way that it treats other individuals in the same circumstances. The 14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause applies only to state governments, but the requirements of the clause apply to the federal government through the Due Process Clause of the 5th Amendment. less -
Meyers Nave

Ninth Circuit Rules on Caste as a Protected Class in CSU’s Anti-Discrimination Policy

Meyers Nave on

On March 12, 2025, the Ninth Circuit issued its decision in Kumar v. Koester, dismissing a constitutional challenge to a university’s anti-discrimination policy that added “caste” as a protected class. Effective January 1,...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

U.S. Department of Education’s Guidance Clarifies Discriminatory Activities Subject to Investigation and Funding Consequences

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on

Following its February 14, 2025, “Dear Colleague Letter,”outlining DEI programs that could result in a loss of federal funding by February 28, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (the “Department”)...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

OCR’s Directive on Race-Conscious Policies in Higher Education

Troutman Pepper Locke on

On February 14, the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (DOE) issued a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL), which calls for educational institutions to immediately cease race-conscious practices in student...more

Saul Ewing LLP

Department of Education’s February 14 Dear Colleague Letter on Title VI and Equal Protection: Overview, Open Issues, and...

Saul Ewing LLP on

INTRODUCTION - On February 14, 2025, the Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (the “Assistant Secretary”) at the United States Department of Education (the “Department”) circulated a Dear Colleague Letter (the “DCL”)...more

Morgan Lewis

US Department of Education Issues Sweeping Guidance on Race-Conscious Practices By Academic Institutions

Morgan Lewis on

The US Department of Education’s (the Department’s) Office for Civil Rights issued a sweeping “Dear Colleague” letter on February 14, 2025 outlining a new zero-tolerance policy for the consideration of race in any regard by...more

Husch Blackwell LLP

U.S. Department of Education Releases Dear Colleague Letter Addressing the Use of Race in Education, Announces Enforcement...

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On February 14, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education released a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) concerning discrimination based on race, color, and national origin in K-12 and higher education. The DCL articulates the...more

Jenner & Block

Client Alert: US Department of Education Issues Dear Colleague Letter Interpreting Students for Fair Admissions: What Colleges and...

Jenner & Block on

On February 14, 2025, the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a Dear Colleague Letter about legal obligations for educational institutions under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Navigating the Title IX NIL Landscape Post-DOE Rescission of Biden Guidance

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has rescinded the name, image, and likeness (NIL) guidance under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 issued in the final days of the Biden...more

Foley Hoag LLP - White Collar Law &...

Developments in the DEI Landscape Heading into Trump's Second Month

Foley Hoag LLP - White Collar Law &... on

President Trump’s Executive Orders targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”), discussed in previous client alerts with regard to higher education institutions and business more broadly, have prompted responses from...more

Littler

U.S. Department of Education’s New “Dear Colleague” Letter Targets DEI Programs and Signals New Era of Title VI Enforcement

Littler on

On February 14, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a “Dear Colleague” Letter (DCL) and emailed it to K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions around the country. The DCL...more

Franczek P.C.

Supreme Court October Term 2024 – Education Cases to Watch

Franczek P.C. on

Some of us measure our year in weeks, months, or, for the readers of this article, likely by the school calendar. The Supreme Court, however, has its own measurement. The Court operates, hears cases, and issues rulings each...more

Quarles & Brady LLP

Back to the Future: What a Recent Vacatur, Executive Order, and Dear Colleague Letter Mean for Title IX Compliance

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Within the last month, three developments have rocked the Title IX world: the Eastern District of Kentucky’s decision in State of Tennessee v. Cardona, President Trump’s Executive Order restricting the federal definition of...more

Latham & Watkins LLP

Key Insights on Executive Order Directing Scrutiny of Private-Sector DEI Efforts

Latham & Watkins LLP on

On January 21, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity” (the Order) directing federal agencies to enforce federal civil rights laws to...more

Foley Hoag LLP

SFFA In The Courts: Where We Are Before the Administration Change

Foley Hoag LLP on

It has been over a year since the Supreme Court issued its decision striking down Harvard’s and the University of North Carolina’s admissions policies in Students for Fair Admissions (“SFFA”) v. Harvard College and SFFA v....more

Bowditch & Dewey

Supreme Court Allows West Point to Continue to Use Race in Admissions (For Now)

Bowditch & Dewey on

On June 29, 2023, admissions policies and practices of many higher ed institutions were forced to pivot when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that using race to make admissions decisions violated the Equal Protection Clause of...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

New Texas Law Prohibiting Institutions of Higher Education From Establishing or Maintaining DEI Offices Is Now Effective

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,... on

Effective January 1, 2024, a new Texas law prohibits public institutions of higher education from, among other things, establishing or maintaining diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) offices or hiring or assigning...more

Fisher Phillips

6 Steps for Private and Independent Schools in the Wake of the SCOTUS Affirmative Action Ruling

Fisher Phillips on

Seeing the barrage of lawsuits following the United States Supreme Court’s recent decision regarding the use of race in admissions in higher education has left many in K-12 independent and private schools scratching their...more

Fisher Phillips

Department of Education Provides DEI Guidance After SCOTUS Affirmative Action Ruling: 4 Things Colleges and Universities Need to...

Fisher Phillips on

Colleges and universities can still take steps to foster diverse and inclusive campuses — even after the Supreme Court’s decision severely limiting race-conscious admissions in education, according to the latest guidance from...more

WilmerHale

Biden Administration Provides Guidance on Advancing Diversity in Higher Education Following the Supreme Courts Decision in...

WilmerHale on

On August 14, 2023, the Biden Administration released its first guidance on how institutions of higher education may lawfully pursue efforts to recruit and admit diverse student bodies in light of the Supreme Court’s recent...more

Jenner & Block

Client Alert: Biden Administration Releases Anticipated Guidance on College Admissions After Supreme Court’s Decision in Students...

Jenner & Block on

On August 14, 2023, the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division and the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights issued joint guidance directed at colleges and universities in the wake of the Supreme Court’s...more

Bressler, Amery & Ross, P.C.

Affirmative Action Overturned

Bressler, Amery & Ross, P.C. on

On June 29, 2023, the United States Supreme Court considered whether race conscious admission decisions by Harvard and the University of North Carolina were lawful under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth...more

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

Next Stage Considerations About the Supreme Court’s Affirmative Action Decision: How to Put the Warning Letter from the State...

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP on

As higher education institutions, state and local governments, private employers and federal contractors grapple with understanding the impacts of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. President...more

Alston & Bird

Sea Change: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Higher Education After Supreme Court Strikes Down Affirmative Action

Alston & Bird on

The Supreme Court’s decision to strike down affirmative action will spur more challenges to educational institutions’ policies beyond admissions. Our Education Team discusses race conscious admissions prior to the Court’s...more

DCI Consulting

Harvard and UNC [6 Things You Need to Consider for Your DEIA Program]

DCI Consulting on

DCI Consulting Group (DCI) is monitoring reactions, answering questions, and releasing content related to the June 2023 Supreme Court ruling on with affirmative action in higher education. The Court's majority opinion was...more

Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

Reviewing Admission Practices Following the Students for Fair Admissions Supreme Court Decision

Steptoe & Johnson PLLC on

As has been widely reported in the national media, on June 29, 2023, the United States Supreme Court, in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College (SFFA), invalidated the affirmative action...more

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