Attending one of Greater Pittsburgh's colleges or universities is a rewarding experience that most graduates will remember fondly. However, your college or university experience can become a nightmare if you are accused of a Title IX violation. Although Title IX was designed to protect students, its interpretation and enforcement vary so significantly that the due process rights of students accused of violating Title IX are often brushed aside. That's why your legal representation is important.
Have you been accused of a Title IX violation? The consequences of violating Title XI include disciplinary measures that will permanently stain your academic record, such as suspension or expulsion. Do not assume your innocence will result in you being cleared in a Title IX investigation. Exercise your due process rights and Call the LLF Law Firm Student Defense Team at 888-535-3686 or contact us online today.
What Is Title IX?
Title IX is the informal name given to a set of education amendments passed in 1972 designed to prevent sexual discrimination in any educational environment (e.g., schools and universities) that receive funding from the federal government. The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the United States Justice Department has the authority to enforce Title IX and recommend sanctions if an investigation reveals that a violation (or violations) occurred.
The severity of the punishment varies based on several factors, which include but are not limited to the following:
- The nature of the violation(s)
- How often the violation(s) occurred
- Whether the existence of multiple violations reveals a pattern and a practice of violating Title IX
Academic institutions that violate Title IX can face severe sanctions, such as having their federal funding stripped away. That would mean applicants to Greater Pittsburgh institutions like the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie-Mellon, and Duquesne could not use federal financial aid to offset the cost of tuition. It would also mean that any federal funding or research grants would be stopped until the offending University returned to compliance with Title IX.
Both outcomes would likely result in a decline in enrollment, resources, and prestige for any affected university, which is why many universities have created their own Title IX compliance offices. Others have instituted Title IX into the school's code of conduct for students, thereby giving the University the authority to investigate and sanction students suspected of violating Title IX. In either case, the university aims to demonstrate that it takes Title IX compliance seriously.
What Aspects of Education Are Covered Under Title IX?
Title IX applies to every area of education, both in and outside the classroom. It specifically bans discrimination based on sex in the following areas:
- Financial aid
- Athletics programs and funding for athletics programs
- Admissions
- Enrollment
- Access to university services
The areas listed above are mostly administrative, but Title IX also prohibits sexual harassment, sexual assault, and any form of harassment or bias based on gender and sexual stereotypes. Many students may not realize that these prohibitions apply to everyone in the university community, including themselves. They are also in force at all times on the university campus or at official off-campus university events.
That means any student can file a Title IX complaint against a fellow student just as easily as they can against a professor, athletic team coach, or teaching assistant. Once a complaint is filed, the university is required to investigate it. The university must also maintain complete records of all its Title IX investigations, including the resolution. If you are the subject of a Title IX complaint, your name will be in those university records.
Your inclusion in those records, especially in an investigation where the university found the allegations credible and disciplined you, can complicate your efforts to build a career or continue your education in graduate school. This underscores the importance of protecting your legal and due process rights during Title IX investigations by getting experienced legal representation.
The Complicated Aspect of Title IX Enforcement
Title IX is supposed to prevent sexual discrimination, sexual assault, and/or harassment in academic settings. However, the investigation stage of Title IX cases can become opaque and difficult for the accused to navigate for several reasons.
The United States Justice Department is responsible for Title IX enforcement at the federal level. However, the entire Justice Department is led by the United States Attorney General. The Attorney General is a political appointee of the president of the United States. Attorneys General are largely responsible for shaping justice department policy and determining its priorities.
The Attorney General also has significant autonomy in choosing who staffs each of the Justice Department's divisions, including the Office of Civil Rights (OCR). It's largely accepted that the incoming Attorney General will replace the heads of all the Justice Department's major divisions. That leadership change can also impact how the OCR investigates Title IX cases or even how the OCR defines sexual discrimination.
A Title IX investigation initiated during one presidential term can quickly fizzle out when the new leadership takes over at the OCR. By the same token, an investigation that was not officially resolved but unlikely to result in sanctions may be seen by the OCR's new leadership as a textbook example of Title IX violations. This pendulum effect can leave both universities and students with an incomplete understanding of Title IX.
Title IX Investigations and Enforcement Can Vary Significantly Between Universities
The OCR bears the ultimate responsibility for setting the nation's Title IX standards, but the OCR's leadership changes every four to eight years. This adds one layer of complication to Title IX enforcement. However, that uncertainty leads to another complicated factor in Title IX enforcement. The lack of consistency and clarity in Title IX standards leaves many universities to craft their own individual Title IX policies.
This creates a patchwork set of Title IX standards and policies that can vary widely between different colleges in universities and colleges in Greater Pittsburgh. If that wasn't complicated enough, changes in university leadership (or to its legal team) may result in changes to the University's Title IX standards, investigation, and enforcement policies. Most of these changes occur behind the scenes with little to no input from the student body.
Never forget that Title IX complaints and investigations will be decided by university administrators. Although they receive training in Title IX, and many Title IX coordinators have legal backgrounds, the arbiters of your case (school administrators) will still rely on their individual interpretation of the events and evidence in rendering a decision. Like any other person, these administrators are capable of having latent biases or preconceptions that impact their decisions.
This puts you, the student, in a situation where the behavior or fact pattern one Title IX coordinator or investigator decides is a violation may be viewed entirely differently by a Title IX at a different university. Add that to the reality that emotions almost invariably run high in Title IX cases. You could end up with your academic future and reputation being determined according to standards that can vary widely between different universities.
Some universities, such as Duquesne, have input proactive measures to help prevent Title IX violations. For example, incoming Duquesne University students are required to complete a series of mandatory Title IX training classes. However, you could complete that class and transfer to the University of Pittsburgh, where the Title IX standard and enforcement policy could differ significantly.
Many Title IX Complaints Are Subjective in Nature
One of the most confounding aspects of Title IX allegations and investigations is the fact that so much of it is subject to individual interpretation. The complaint itself might arise out of a cultural misunderstanding between students or a comment someone overheard without knowing the full context of the conversation. Nevertheless, these kinds of miscommunications and misunderstandings can be grounds for a person to feel sufficiently aggrieved to file a Title IX complaint against you.
Personal interactions with students are another place where Title IX complaints may arise. Title IX covers activities anywhere on the campus, including the private time you spend with other students where intimacy is involved. Different people have different comfort levels in these situations, and it's very easy for signals to be misinterpreted by one or both parties. This could lead to a Title IX complaint for sexual assault, which your university will be required to investigate.
The same thing is true about sexual harassment or discrimination based on sexual bias. One of your classmates can misinterpret an offhand comment you made or something you did as sexual harassment or discrimination and report you to the University. Once that's done, the university is legally obligated to investigate that report, and your academic future could hinge on the result of that investigation.
Potential Complications of Title IX-Related Disciplinary Sanctions
Colleges and universities have wide discretion in adjudicating and sanctioning students being investigated for Title IX violations. These sanctions can include formal reprimands, suspensions, and expulsion. Regardless of the sanctions, having them on your academic record will follow you for much of your adult life.
Quality Legal Representation is Key in Title IX Investigations
Your academic career could be in jeopardy in any Title IX investigation. Unfortunately, the investigatory process is not necessarily designed to be neutral, as you would find in criminal or civil court cases. You will not be judged by a jury of your peers. It will likely be some combination of university administrators who decide your fate, and their overriding concern will be ensuring the university is compliant with existing federal policy on Title IX.
That doesn't mean that every Title IX investigation will end with sanctions, but it is very easy for your rights to be trampled or infringed upon in this process. Your best defense in any Title IX investigation is having an experienced legal team who will protect your rights and ensure the school follows its policy to the letter. The LLF Law Firm's Student Defense Team has successfully defended students in Title IX cases all over Pennsylvania.
Do not attempt to talk your way out of a Title IX investigation or assume that university administrators will rule in your favor because you “know in your heart that you did nothing wrong or had no ill intent.” It may not be in your best interest to answer any questions without the benefit of legal representation. Contact the LLF Law Firm Student Defense Team as soon as you discover you are the subject of a Title IX investigation or complaint.
How Can Legal Representation Help?
The LLF Law Firm Student Defense Team has a proven track record of successfully representing Greater Pittsburgh College and University students in Title IX investigations. No matter where you attend school, you can rest assured that our team will be familiar with its policies and procedures. We also have a strong investigative team that will examine and, if necessary, refute the evidence or charges your college or university mounts against you.
Our ultimate goal in every case is to create a situation where you can continue your academic career with your reputation intact. Many Greater Pittsburgh area colleges and universities have options where we can work to reach a mediated settlement that allows you to maintain your student status. This may involve direct negotiations with your university's Office of General Counsel (OGC) or legal representatives.
There are also programs like Duquesne University's TAP 61 Informal Resolution, where we mediate your case with a Deputy Title IX Coordinator. However, options like the TAP 61 Informal Resolution or mediation with your school's OGC are usually only available before the complaint has been resolved. Your university may not even inform you of these options. That's why it's critical to contact our Student Defense Team immediately if you're investigated for Title IX violations.
We Are Passionate About Student Defense
Being investigated for Title IX violations can make you feel like the entire university is lined up against you. The process often lacks transparency, and the standards for guilt and innocence can vary widely between different institutions. The best way to fight back is by exercising your right to a quality defense of your reputation and academic standing.
The LLF Law Firm is passionate about student defense. Our mission is to give you the benefit of a legal team who is as passionate about defending you as you are about your education. We will not let your university rush to judgment at the expense of your due process rights or a full rendering of the facts in your case. With that said, time is of the essence.
The sooner we begin fighting your Title IX case, the better our chances of making a positive impact on the outcome. We only want the best for our clients, and we pride ourselves on giving them our best. Title IX investigations can be scary, but they don't have to ruin your academic career. Call the LLF Law Firm Student Defense Team at 888-535-3686 or contact us online today.
