Victim Rights Law Center v. Cardona

On June 10, 2020, the Victim Rights Law Center, Equal Rights Advocates, Legal Voice, and Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation challenged the 2020 Title IX regulations as arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act. FIRE, joined by Speech First and the Independent Women’s Law Center moved to intervene as defendants. After the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts denied intervention in a summary order on February 18, 2021, FIRE appealed this ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, which affirmed. On July 28, the district court largely upheld the 2020 Title IX regulations, invalidating only one provision which prohibited testimony not subject to cross-examination. This merits ruling is on appeal in the First Circuit, with a briefing schedule yet to be set. Families Advocating for Campus Equality (FACE) and several students intervened for purposes of the appeal so they can retain their right to confront those who have alleged Title IX violations. After the district court denied FACE’s motion to intervene for purposes of appeal, FACE appealed this ruling. Thus both the merits ruling and the denial of FACE’s intervention are now before the First Circuit.

On March 17, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit granted Defendants-Appellees’ unopposed motion to stay the case until the Department of Education completes its rulemaking. Defendants-Appellees filed their status report on Monday, May 16, 2022, notifying the Court that the Department of Education submitted their drafted rules to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs—the office which coordinates review of Executive Branch regulations—and are now awaiting their review of the rules.