There’s only one reason students show up on this page: you’ve lost your hearing at the University of Kansas. And you didn’t just lose: now you’re facing a serious sanction—suspension, perhaps, or dismissal. You’re hoping there’s still some way to salvage your university career.
There is. Among your several due process rights at KU, you are entitled to appeal the outcome of your hearing. That can be a difficult task, though, and you’re going to need help.
Luckily, help is available. KU gives you the right to an advisor and to select an attorney for that role. Whatever your situation, the LLF National Law Firm’s Student Defense Team is on your side and ready to use every resource at our disposal to get you the best possible resolution to your case.
You must act quickly, though. KU gives you just thirty days to file your appeal. That’s not a lot of time. Call the LLF National Law Firm today at 888-535-3686, or use our online questionnaire to tell us more about your situation.
The KU Appeals Process: What to Know
Let’s start by talking about what appeals aren’t. They aren’t a second chance to argue for your innocence. Rightly or wrongly, you’ve been found responsible for (guilty of) an offense. Keep trying to convince university officials you’re “not responsible” (innocent), and no one’s going to bother even reading your appeal.
What you can argue is that you were denied a fair chance to make your case. You’re looking for “grounds” to support your appeal. At KU, there are just three possibilities.
- The university failed to follow its own procedures in your case.
- The university has imposed a sanction that is obviously disproportionate to the nature of your offense.
- You have discovered new evidence since the conclusion of the hearing that could potentially exonerate you.
In addition, you face a number of important hurdles in establishing your case.
First, you now bear the “burden” of providing evidence. You may have introduced evidence at your original hearing, but you didn’t need to. You had the presumption of innocence (“not responsible”). It was up to the university to provide a “preponderance of evidence” demonstrating your responsibility. This time around, you’re the one making the accusation. You’re arguing that you were mistreated by the process in some way. The university now has the presumption of innocence. You’re now responsible for providing evidence.
Not just any evidence will do, though. Remember, you’re not trying to argue you’re innocent. You’re only arguing that you were treated unfairly. The only evidence you’re allowed to use is the record of the original hearing. The one exception is “new evidence.” In that case, though, you aren’t arguing that evidence proves your innocence, just that you should have the chance to present it.
There are no hearings in appeals. The University Judicial Board, which decides appeals, holds closed-door meetings. You cannot address members directly. You cannot call witnesses. You cannot cross-examine witnesses. Everything about your case must be contained in the appeal itself, which means this written document must be clear and compelling.
If you lose your appeal, your case is over. The University Judicial Board’s decision is final. If you win your appeal, it’s just the first step. You then have to go back and defend yourself all over again at a new hearing.
Your LLF National Law Firm Attorney’s Responsibilities
From the moment you contact the LLF National Law Firm, the attorney assigned to your case will begin reviewing the record of your investigation and hearing. They’ll pay special attention to the transcript or recording of the hearing, since that’s where you must get your evidence.
If there are grounds for an appeal, you can be sure your attorney will find them. Then, they’ll use those grounds to draft an appeal on your behalf, one that explains your position and offers concrete evidence to support that position.
Finally, they’ll make sure your appeal is filed properly and on time. Of course, from start to finish, they’ll also be keeping a close watch on the process to ensure you’re treated fairly.
The Stakes
Anytime you’re filing an appeal, you’re at a disadvantage. That’s the nature of the process. When you’re initially charged, you have several important rights, but by the end of the hearing, you’ve exhausted most of them.
Everything is on the line at this point, though, and you cannot afford to give up. If you’re facing dismissal, that’s the end of your career at KU. It could also be the end of your academic career altogether. You can’t simply transfer to another school with a disciplinary misconduct offense on your record. Suspension is somewhat better, but only somewhat. It can be hard returning from a suspension. You may have lost your financial aid package as a result of your offense. And you, too, will have a transcription notation to contend with. That can make job interviews awkward.
The good news is that you can win your appeal. The purpose of an appeal is to correct mistakes in the disciplinary process. It turns out that colleges and universities make lots of mistakes, so there are usually lots of reasons to demand a new hearing. Maybe the original panel of decision-makers refused to allow in evidence that you had a right to present. Maybe they listened to second-hand testimony they shouldn’t have. Maybe they simply let their prejudices dictate their decisions. Whatever the reason, you have a right to justice, and an appeal can be the path to gaining that justice.
One Last Option
An appeal isn’t necessarily the only path to justice, though. LLF National Law Firm attorneys can sometimes negotiate settlements outside the disciplinary misconduct process.
KU maintains something called the Office of General Counsel, or OGC. These are lawyers hired specifically to provide the university with advice on legal matters. Because we are dedicated to student misconduct defense, we’ve developed close relationships with a number of OGCs around the country. Even if we don’t know your school’s OGC, we know how to approach them, and if we can convince them you deserve to be heard, they’ll convince your school’s administrators to listen.
In the past, we’ve managed to get clients’ sanctions reduced, get sanctions removed from transcripts, and even get hearing outcomes overturned altogether. This is a unique service we can offer because we work in the field of student defense.
How Can the LLF National Law Firm Help?
Whether you’re entirely innocent or simply looking to get fair treatment from the University of Kansas, you owe it to yourself to continue the fight. We’re here and ready to help. We’ll guide you through the entire appeals process, make sure you put forward your very strongest arguments, and guarantee the university respects your rights.
As we said in the beginning, though, you cannot afford to wait. There are deadlines for filing your appeal. Get started now. Contact the LLF National Law Firm at 888-535-3686 or use our online form.