Kimberly Lau, partner and head of the Title IX/College Disciplinary practice, submitted comments on the Department of Education's proposed changes to Title IX rules.
As of January 30, 2019, the deadline for public comment, the Department of Education received more than 100,000 responses to its proposed new rules on how college campuses should handle cases of sexual assault. Ms. Lau, who has handled nearly 200 related cases representing all sides, including male, female and transgender students as well as faculty, submitted comments, co-authored with other attorneys and legal scholars in the field.
The comments address the importance of restoring fairness in Title IX proceedings and giving complainants more control over the process.
From the comment:
As Secretary DeVos remarked, “Every survivor of sexual misconduct must be taken seriously. Every student accused of sexual misconduct must know that guilt is not predetermined. These are non-negotiable principles.” Translating these principles into policy was bound to arouse passions. That a proposed rule of this length would generate criticism is hardly surprising; we criticize some of its components ourselves. We worry, however, that much of the criticism has seemed directed at proposals that do not exist, falsely maintaining that the Department’s goal is something other than procedures that will be fair for all.