Search Results for: OCR

The US Department of Education announced Monday that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) had launched investigations in five states to determine whether statewide prohibitions on universal indoor masking are discriminatory against students with disabilities.  The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has led to mixed state responses to indoor masking and vaccination requirements. Some states such as [...]

The US Supreme Court declined Monday to review a decision that allowed a transgender student to use the bathroom that corresponded to his gender identity. Gloucester County School Board v. Grimm was originally filed in 2015 after Gavin Grimm, who was born as female but identifies as male, was denied the use of the boys’ [...]

The US Department of Education issued a notice of interpretation Wednesday to extend Title IX’s prohibition on sex-based discrimination to gender identity and sexual orientation, reversing the opposite stand taken by the Education Department under the Trump administration. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prevents sex-based discrimination in any education program offered by [...]

US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra announced on Monday that healthcare providers are prohibited from discriminating against gay and transgender individuals, reversing a controversial Donald Trump-era policy. HHS’s decision allows the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to extend the interpretation of Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act and Title [...]

In September, China launched an initiative to set the standards of global data-security rules. This is on top of other efforts that China has taken to launch a data governance regime. This, for America, should be the spark that ignites the conversation around American data governance policies. Data is, after all, as many quip “the [...]

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP joined together to file a lawsuit on Thursday against US Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos over new regulations regarding the handling of sexual harassment and assault on college campuses. The Department’s new regulations offer further definitions for what conduct constitutes sexual harassment [...]

The US Department of Education issued final regulations on Wednesday impacting the ways in which schools covered under Title IX respond to incidents involving alleged sexual abuse and misconduct. The regulations significantly narrow the definition of sexual assault, require that all schools respond “promptly and supportively” to alleged victims of sexual harassment, and provide requirements [...]

On Friday the Attorney General for the State of California sent a strongly-worded response to a notice of violation issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The HHS Office of Civil Rights (OCR) had sent the notice to California on January 24, stating that they found California to be in violation of [...]

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit seeking injunctive relief on Friday filed by SurvJustice and other rights groups against US Secretary of Education Betsey DeVos and the department’s policy regarding Title IX enforcement. The department of Education released a new guidance document in 2017 that has been highly contested since. This decision comes after oral [...]

US Secretary of Education Besty DeVos filed proposed amendments to Title IX Friday addressing campus sexual harassment and assault. Title IX originated in 1972 with the goal of reducing sexual discrimination in educational environments receiving federal funding. In 2011 the Obama administration expanded the scope of the law with guidance (known as the Dear Colleagues Letter) [...]