Title IX

AALRR’s Title IX Team is proud of its long history of providing trusted legal counsel, advice, and related services on a wide range of Title IX matters for California’s leading public and private higher educational institutions, school districts, and other recipients of federal funding.  AALRR’s Title IX Team is well positioned to assist clients in understanding and navigating Title IX’s requirements and their interplay with related obligations under state education and civil rights laws, with the goal of ensuring their full compliance under governing federal and state laws.

Along with its implementing regulations and its subsequent interpretation by the federal courts, Title IX has had a central role in promoting and protecting the civil rights of countless individuals, particularly women and girls, by ensuring more equitable opportunities and access in classrooms and on athletic fields.  Title IX is the cornerstone of federal statutory protection against sexual harassment and other types of sexual misconduct in our nation’s elementary, secondary, and postsecondary educational institutions.  The rights afforded under Title IX have been increasingly interpreted by federal courts and presidential administrations to include protection against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. 

The following are a few key examples of the exceptional support and services provided by AALRR’s Title IX Team:

• In-depth, targeted trainings for administrators, coordinators, personnel, and/or students on rights, duties, and responsibilities regarding complaints of discrimination including, but not limited to, sexual harassment, sexual violence, and related matters;
• Compliance counsel, including reviewing and revising policies and procedures governing complaints of sex-based discrimination, sexual harassment and sexual violence, reporting requirements under the Clery Act, and student disciplinary proceedings;
• Development of policies and procedures to prevent discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity in compliance with protections afforded under Title IX and state education and civil rights laws;
• Managing and/or conducting complex, high-profile, and sensitive investigations involving complaints of sex-based discrimination, including sexual harassment, sexual violence, and other types of wrongful conduct;
• Service as Title IX Investigators, Hearing Officers, and Appellate Officers for proceedings involving allegations of sex-based discrimination, sexual harassment, sexual violence, and related matters;
• Representation, counsel, and advice in complex investigations conducted by the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education or the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice;
• Advice on the intersection between internal investigations of sexual misconduct and related criminal proceedings;
• Compliance counsel regarding the provision of equal opportunities and resource comparability in athletics; and
• Advice on facilities-related issues, such as complying with applicable safety laws and conducting threat assessments to improve site security.  

With the goal of ensuring a safe educational and work environment on campuses throughout California, AALRR offers experienced and exceptional counsel on civil rights compliance under Title IX and related state laws.

If your educational institution has questions or seeks counsel or services regarding Title IX compliance and related matters, please contact one of the attorneys on AALRR’s Title IX Team.

Noteworthy

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• 08.22.2024

District Court Issues Preliminary Injunction Requiring Some California Educational Entities to Halt Implementation and Enforcement of 2024 Title IX Regulations

• 04.30.2024

Does Tax-Exempt Status Without More Create Title IX Obligations?

• 04.24.2024

U.S. Department of Education Issues Long-Awaited Final Title IX Regulations

Upcoming AALRR Title IX Trainings

Fall 2024 | Title IX Training Academy

October 3, 2024 | The Title IX Team and Process Under the 2020 Regulations (K12)

AALRR Title IX Training Library

With the ever-evolving legal landscape surrounding Title IX, it's crucial for districts to stay compliant with regulations. Our Title IX Team offers comprehensive Title IX training, including the 2020 regulations and recent court rulings, to ensure your district is well-prepared to handle complaints and investigations effectively.

Empower your team with the knowledge and tools needed to protect students’ rights while maintaining compliance. Contact us today to schedule a customized Title IX training session tailored to your district’s needs.

Title IX Training for Employees Not on the Title IX Team  

30- to 45-minute session

This training covers what all employees need to know to comply with the new 2024 Title IX regulations, including the new definitions, reporting requirements, notice requirements, and response obligations. This is a training for employees who do not need to attend a full compliance or specialized trainings for Title IX roles because they are not on the Title IX Team.

Compliance Training for the Title IX Team

3-hour session

This training provides the knowledge and tools needed to effectively navigate the 2024 changes to the Title IX regulations. This interactive training will explain the Title IX regulations and the procedures for processing a Title IX complaint from the intake stage through a discipline recommendation, if any. This program provides 3 hours of training for the members of your Title IX team, consistent with the recommendations of the federal Office for Civil Rights. This training will prepare your District to prevent and address allegations of harassment and discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, gender identity, parental status, and pregnancy or related conditions. 

Title IX Investigator/Decision-Maker Training 

6-hours – two 3-hour sessions (e.g. 8-11 a.m. and 12-3 p.m.)

Topics Covered:

Overview of general investigation requirements and techniques, including:

• Discuss thorough, trauma-informed questioning for all parties and witnesses
• How to manage difficult advisors and how to interact with the Title IX Coordinator
• Discuss preparation of witness summaries and how to respond to witness changes or “edits” in their summaries
• Discuss disputed and undisputed material issues
• Discuss how to weigh evidence related to objective credibility considerations
• Review a truncated Draft Report of Evidence and/or a truncated Sample Final Investigative Report
• Review the testimony, documentary evidence, identify disputed issues, review credibility for disputed issues, weigh the evidence, write the decision with factual findings using a preponderance of the evidence standard and rationale. Apply factual findings to the policy definitions, write the determination as to whether the applicable Title IX policy has been violated using a preponderance of the evidence standard, and explain rationale.

Title IX Training for Decision-Makers

5 hours – two 2.5-hour sessions (e.g. 8-10:30 a.m. and 1-3:30 p.m.)

Topics Covered:

• Review Policies and Procedures
• Review final Investigative Report from Investigator
• Provide witness list to Title IX Coordinator/Hearing Coordinator
• Review any procedural questions from the parties and review parties proposed questions and determine if relevant; if irrelevant, either rephrase or reject with rationale
• Overview of relevant, irrelevant, and repetitive questions and how to properly rephrase questions
• Review the testimony, documentary evidence, identify disputed issues, review credibility for disputed issues, weigh the evidence, write the decision with factual findings using a preponderance of the evidence standard and rationale. Apply factual findings to the policy definitions, write the determination as to whether the applicable Title IX policy has been violated using a preponderance of the evidence standard, and explain rationale.

Attendees must attend both sessions.  For districts that will retain the separate investigator and decision-maker model.

Title IX Training Investigator Training

5 hours – two 2.5-hour sessions (e.g. 8-10:30 a.m. and 1-3:30 p.m.)

Topics Covered:

• Review Policies and Procedures
• Review final Investigative Report from Investigator
• Provide witness list to Title IX Coordinator/Hearing Coordinator
• Review any procedural questions from the parties and review parties proposed questions and determine if relevant; if irrelevant, either rephrase or reject with rationale
• Overview of relevant, irrelevant, and repetitive questions and how to properly rephrase questions
• Review the testimony, documentary evidence, identify disputed issues, review credibility for disputed issues, weigh the evidence, write the decision with factual findings using a preponderance of the evidence standard and rationale. Apply factual findings to the policy definitions, write the determination as to whether the applicable Title IX policy has been violated using a preponderance of the evidence standard, and explain rationale.

Attendees must attend both sessions.  For districts that will retain the separate investigator and decision-maker model.

Appeal Officer Training

2-hour session

Topics Covered:

• Overview of Title IX Appeal Officer Role and other Title IX Team Roles related to appeal issues
• Identify appeals of dismissals compared to appeal of decisions
• Review definitions of sexual harassment as applied to appeals
• Review and discuss grounds for appeals, appeal procedures, and the limited scope of appeals
• Consider practical application, best practices, and other considerations on appeal
• Discuss several hypothetical scenarios