Cases & Developments - National Association of College and University Attorneys

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Date:
9/29/2023
Patel v. Long Island Univ. (E.D. N.Y. Sep. 25, 2023)
Memorandum & Order granting Defendant’s Motion to Compel Settlement. Plaintiff, a former tenure-track instructor at Long Island University, brought discrimination and retaliation claims against the University after he was denied reappointment. During a settlement conference with the Magistrate Judge, the parties reached a settlement on all claims. When plaintiff asserted that the settlement was no longer acceptable, the University moved to compel. In holding that the settlement is binding and enforceable, the court noted the lack of an express reservation requiring a written agreement, partial performance through cessation of litigation, oral agreement on all material terms, and that the relatively simple agreement was memorialized by a minute entry following the settlement conference.
Topics:
Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Date:
9/29/2023
Mohamed v. George Wash. Univ. (D. D.C. Sep. 22, 2023)
Memorandum Opinion granting Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff, a former employee at George Washington University, brought Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) interference and retaliation claims against the University when he was terminated after he took extended leave but failed to submit required medical certifications following receipt of conditional approval for leave to care for his father in Italy. Plaintiff did not fly to Italy for more than a month after beginning leave and failed to respond to multiple calls and emails from the University over a period of several weeks. In granting summary judgment to the University on his FMLA interference claim, the court found that the University only provided him conditional approval for leave and warned him that he would not be covered if the medical certification was not submitted. Turning to his retaliation claim, the court found that plaintiff was unable to demonstrate pretext because the University started the termination process the day before he finally submitted the long-requested medical certification.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) | Retaliation
Date:
9/29/2023
Spectrum WT v. Wendler (N.D. Tex. Sep. 21, 2023)
Memorandum Opinion and Order granting-in-part Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss and denying Plaintiffs’ Motion for Preliminary Injunction. Plaintiffs, a student organization at West Texas A&M University (WT) dedicated to raising awareness of the LGBT+ community and two of its officers, brought First Amendment claims against WT’s President and multiple officials seeking injunctive and declaratory relief, as well as damages, after the President wrote the group to express his opposition to its plan to hold an on-campus a drag show that would be open to children accompanied by a parent to raise funds for LGBT+ suicide prevention. Though the President supported the mission of the event, he wrote that “[d]rag shows are derisive, divisive[,] and demoralizing misogyny, no matter the stated intent.” The court held that the President was entitled to qualified immunity, finding that because the proposed expression was potentially sexualized, at an event that was open to children, and not overtly political in nature, traditional campus public forum considerations did not apply and the President’s objections to the content were not objectively unreasonable. For these reasons, the court also denied plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunction, finding they had not demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits.
Topics:
Constitutional Issues | Event Management & Facilities Use Policies | First Amendment & Free Speech
Date:
9/29/2023
Russell v. Westchester Cmty. Coll. (S.D. N.Y. Sep. 21, 2023)
Opinion and Order granting Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff, a former adjunct professor at Westchester Community College, brought disability discrimination and retaliation claims against the College and multiple officials after it declined to offer her additional classes following a series of hostile and abusive interactions, including one in which she “berated, humiliated, and cursed at” a student she suspected of plagiarism. In granting summary judgment to the College on her discrimination claim, the court found that although plaintiff had been transported to an emergency room with complaints of an irregular heartbeat, her medical records did not reveal a diagnosis of a heart condition and discovery did not produce evidence that officials regarded her as disabled. Though plaintiff had complained of discrimination in multiple emails, the court further found that she was unable to establish either causation or pretext in either her discrimination or retaliation claims, noting a lack of evidence that anything other than the College’s dissatisfaction with her hostile conduct was the reason she was not reappointed.
Topics:
Disability Discrimination | Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Retaliation
Date:
9/29/2023
Richardson v. Nw. Univ. (N.D. Ill. Sep. 21, 2023)
Memorandum Opinion and Order granting-in-part and denying-in-part Defendants’ Partial Motions to Dismiss. Plaintiff, a former member of the cheerleading team at Northwestern University, brought Title IX, forced labor, forced-labor trafficking, sex trafficking, contract, and intentional infliction of emotional distress claims against the University, athletics officials, and a deputy Title IX Coordinator, alleging that officials required female – but not male – cheerleaders to attend various fundraising events in their cheerleading uniforms where they knew the students would experience sexual harassment and assaults. The court permitted her forced labor and trafficking claims to proceed, finding that officials knew or should have known of the likely harassment and inappropriate touching when they planned events that (1) female cheerleaders would be required to attend in uniform, (2) the University benefitted financially, and (3) the prospect that the student might have to repay her scholarship and expenses related to cheerleading events if she left the team functioned sufficiently as a threat of harm. It also held that the allegation that plaintiff was “intentionally and repeatedly put … in situations where she would be sexually assaulted” was sufficient for her to proceed on her IIED claim. It dismissed her contract claims based on the University’s sexual misconduct policy, finding that its aspirational statements and reservation to the University of discretion in responding to allegations fell short of an unambiguous promise.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Sex Discrimination | Student Athlete Issues | Students
Date:
9/29/2023
Thomas v. E. Carolina Univ. (E.D. N.C. Sep. 21, 2023)
Order granting-in-part and denying-in-part Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss. Plaintiff, a former head coach of the women’s volleyball team at East Carolina University (ECU), brought discrimination and retaliation claims against ECU after she was terminated for creating a “toxic” culture within her program. Plaintiff alleged that her termination was the result of complaints she raised about Title IX compliance in ECU’s athletics programs. In permitting her discriminatory discharge claim to proceed, the court found that plaintiff had sufficiently alleged that she was a high-performing, experienced female coach who was replaced by a male coach with only one year of coaching experience at the collegiate level. It permitted her retaliation claim to proceed, finding that she plausibly alleged that (1) ECU departed from its usual practice and denied her team post-season play two weeks after she complained of gender bias against the volleyball program, and (2) an athletics official had solicited complaints about plaintiff from her players and promised an assistant coach would be promoted if plaintiff was fired.
Topics:
Athletics & Sports | Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Gender Equity in Athletics | Retaliation | Sex Discrimination | Sex Discrimination in Employment
Date:
9/29/2023
Rezac v. Navarro Coll. (Tex. App. Sep. 21, 2023)
Opinion affirming dismissal. Plaintiff, a former student in the fire academy at Navarro College, brought negligence claims against the College after an employee sprayed him with water from a fire hose as he and other students posed for a photograph by a fire truck following a family night demonstration of firefighting techniques. The force of the water ruptured his eardrum and caused concussion-like symptoms. In affirming the College’s plea to the jurisdiction, the Court of Appeals of Texas found that the plaintiff could not establish a waiver of the College’s governmental immunity under the Texas Tort Claims Act through the motor-vehicle exception, noting that although the fire truck was a motor vehicle, at the time of the injury it was parked and connected to a fire hydrant rather than functioning as a motor-driven vehicle.
Topics:
Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration | Tort Litigation
Date:
9/29/2023
Wren v. Midwestern State Univ. (Tex. App. Sep. 20, 2023)
Memorandum Opinion affirming dismissal. Plaintiff, a former student in the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) program at Midwestern State University (MSU), brought contract and state-law discrimination claims against the University after she was dismissed for failure to enroll in required classes. Plaintiff had failed a clinical practicum exam and was required to enroll in a special topics course in order to continue in the program, but she declined to do so due to financial concerns. The Court of Appeals of Texas affirmed the University’s plea to the jurisdiction, finding that plaintiff failed to include exhibits to establish the creation of a contract. It affirmed dismissal of her state-law discrimination claims, noting that she withdrew from the program on her own accord citing financial hardship.
Topics:
Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration | Tort Litigation
Date:
9/29/2023
Stewart v. The Univ. of Me. Sys. (Me. Super. Sep. 18, 2023)
Order granting Plaintiff’s Motion for Class Certification. Plaintiff, a student at the University of Maine Orono during Spring 2020, on behalf of himself and a putative class, brought contract claims against the University after it ceased in-person instruction and closed campus facilities due to the coronavirus pandemic. In granting plaintiff’s motion, the court certified three classes: (1) the “tuition class” of students “who paid tuition, or on whose behalf tuition was paid, but had their classes and educational services moved to online only learning;” (2) the “system fee class” related to the “Student Activity Fee” and the “Unified Fee” paid to the University of Maine System; and (3) the “Orono Fee Class” related to the “Communications Fee” and “Recreation Center Fee” specific to the campus. In certifying the classes, the court found that common questions predominate. On the issue of contract formation, it found that questions related to common policy, marketing, and other materials predominated over the circumstances of each class member. With respect to the calculation of damages, it found that the question of the difference in the price for on-campus instruction over the lower price of online instruction was predominate, and with respect to fees, the question of whether the University cancelled the particular services for which the fees were charged predominated over individual questions such as which campus students attended or the level of fees paid as it varied by number of credit hours enrolled or undergraduate vs. graduate status.
Topics:
Campus Police, Safety, & Crisis Management | Coronavirus
Date:
9/22/2023
NACUBO On Your Side (Sep. 18, 2023)
Summary from the National Association of College & University Business Officers on legislative and regulatory actions that occurred from September 6-18, 2023. This summary highlights the IRS’ announcement of a moratorium on processing new employee retention credit claims through the end of the year; a CFPB Report on Tuition Payment Plans in Higher Education; a poll by Independent Sector finding broad support for restoring the universal charitable deduction for taxpayers; and a new Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) project to review its guidance on accounting and financial reporting issues related to subsequent events.
Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act

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