Rutgers University is a top-tier school. If you can make it through four years there, you're almost guaranteed a successful future. Unfortunately, not everyone does make it through. Rutgers maintains strict policies with regard to both academic success and personal behaviors, and each year, the school dismisses dozens of students for everything from underage drinking to plagiarism.
If you're facing dismissal, you should know: National Student Defense attorney-advisor Joseph D. Lento is here to help. What can he do for you? That depends on your particular situation. You can be certain, though, that he knows how Rutgers' judicial system works, he's skilled in negotiating with faculty and administrators, and he's dedicated to the principle that all students deserve due process rights and fair treatment.
You'll find some basic information below on all the various reasons Rutgers could dismiss you and descriptions of how to go about defending yourself. Ultimately, though, if you want to give yourself the best chance at salvaging your future, you want to contact Joseph D. Lento and his Student Defense Team at the very first sign of trouble.
Reasons for Dismissal at Rutgers
There are many reasons why Rutgers might try to dismiss you, too many to list here. For simplicity's sake, though, they can be grouped into four basic categories.
- Academic Performance: If you can't keep up as a student at Rutgers, you could find yourself on probation, suspended, or even dismissed. Keeping up means maintaining a 2.0 cumulative GPA and earning at least a 1.75 GPA each term.
- Academic Misconduct: Rutgers also maintains a strict policy on Academic Integrity. Cheat on an exam, or plagiarize parts of a paper, and you could face serious consequences, including dismissal.
- Disciplinary Misconduct: Rutgers doesn't just hold you to high standards in the classroom. The university closely scrutinizes all of your behaviors. Conduct violations like hazing, weapons possession, and drug use are all serious enough to get you expelled.
- Sexual Misconduct: Sexual misconduct is one of the most serious charges any college student can face. Such accusations aren't just subject to school policy but to federal law under Title IX of the 1972 Education Amendments. The minimum sanction in such cases is usually suspension, and the most likely is expulsion.
The Adjudication Process
If you're facing a misconduct charge of any kind at Rutgers University, you have the right to defend yourself. The specifics of how you do that can depend on the specific allegation against you, but generally speaking, all cases unfold in the same way.
- Cases typically begin when someone makes an allegation against you, either to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards or to the school's designated Title IX Coordinator.
- If the university decides to proceed with the complaint, the first step is an investigation. Investigations can be simple. Most academic misconduct cases, for instance, just involve interviews with the Complainant (accuser) and Respondent (accused) and a collection of the Respondent's coursework. Other investigations, such as those into sexual misconduct allegations, can be complex and take up to 90 days to complete.
- In all cases, you have the right to choose an advisor to help you through the process, though this person may not answer questions on your behalf.
- At the end of the investigation, investigators compile a written report summarizing their findings. This becomes the centerpiece of the next phase of the case: a formal hearing.
- The hearing is your opportunity to present evidence and call witnesses. You may also ask questions of the Complainant and any witnesses against you. The Complainant may do the same.
- At the end of the hearing, decision-makers determine whether or not you are Responsible for an offense by applying a legal standard known as “Preponderance of Evidence.” Far less strict than “Beyond a Reasonable Doubt,” this standard requires decision-makers to find you Responsible if they believe it is “more likely than not” that you committed a violation.
- If you're found Responsible, decision-makers must also assign an appropriate sanction.
While all cases follow this basic outline, there are some key differences, particularly between academic and disciplinary misconduct cases and sexual misconduct cases. The latter is governed by federal law, which gives you a number of important rights you might not get in the former. For example, in sexual misconduct cases, you have the right to choose an attorney as your advisor. You also have the right to review the investigative report and suggest revisions before it is used at the hearing and the right to cross-examine the Complainant directly during the hearing.
It is often difficult to navigate the many complexities of a university investigation and hearing. You may have noticed, for instance, that you have a number of rights in these cases, but you can only use them effectively if you fully understand them. For this reason, it can be crucial to have an experienced attorney-advisor like Joseph D. Lento by your side to help guide you through the process.
Appeals Processes
Beyond the right to be heard at a hearing, you also have the right in all misconduct cases at Rutgers to appeal the outcome of that hearing. However, there are restrictions on whether or not your appeal will be heard.
First, you have just ten days to file an appeal in academic and disciplinary misconduct cases. You have just five days to file an appeal in sexual misconduct cases. In addition, an appeal is not an opportunity to re-argue the case. Instead, grounds are restricted to issues like
- The discovery of new evidence
- A procedural in how the case was conducted
- Bias on the part of an investigator or decision maker
- A sanction that is disproportionate to the offense
Academic Dismissal Cases
You may have noticed that so far, there has been no mention of dismissal cases that involve academic deficiencies. That's because these cases aren't usually open to debate. Rather they are based on objective factors like GPA and are made “automatically.”
However, there are ways to deal with these types of dismissals as well. If, for example, there are mitigating factors that led to your poor performance, you can appeal to the dean of your school or college. Alternatively, you can try approaching faculty directly and arguing for a higher grade or asking for extra credit assignments. Joseph D. Lento can explain all the options available to you and can help you decide which ones will work best in your particular situation.
Fighting for Your Future
You probably already have a good sense of why you need an attorney-advisor if you're fighting dismissal at Rutgers. Procedures can be complicated and, at best, difficult to navigate.
Despite this fact, the university doesn't always allow you to bring an attorney with you to investigative meetings and hearings. You need to know, though: you are always better off consulting a lawyer, even if they can't accompany you to proceedings. An attorney can help you formulate a strategy, gather evidence, develop questions for witnesses, and monitor how the school treats you.
Joseph D. Lento built his practice helping students just like you handle all types of misconduct charges. He's dealt with everything from plagiarism allegations to rape charges. He knows how to negotiate with faculty and administrators; he knows how to interview witnesses; he knows how to put together a water-tight appeal. Most importantly, no matter what problem you're facing, Joseph D. Lento is on your side and will do everything in his power to get you the very best possible resolution to your case.
To find out more about what Joseph D. Lento can do for you, contact the Lento Law Firm today at 888-555-3686, or use our automated online form.
