Quora Answer: Do you agree with U.S. Rep. Slotkin that DeVos has gone too far in her changes to Title IX that will increase the due process rights of the accused on college campuses?

I have represented college students in sexual misconduct proceedings since the Obama-era “guidance” and the stop sexual assault on campus movement finally got Title IX coordinators placed in practically all schools all of whom revised and started enforcing their sexual assault policies.

I saw, from that time onwards, the growth of a vein of activism that did not match with my legal training: One that insisted that the complainant (almost always a heterosexual female complaining against an almost always heterosexual man) had to be protected in ways that—at their most extreme—assumed women were always subservient agents with no freedom. That vein of activism included arguments that women complaining of rape not only should be “believed first” but also should not be “re-traumatized” either by the staff investigating or by the respondent defending himself, for example, with a cross examination to test her veracity. That vein of activism informs statements from politicians like Ms. Slotkin and Ms. Speier that I disagree with.

I disagree that a school, or the regulations implementing Title IX can go too far in securing due process (or fairness) for respondents because taking away a degree (a property interest) is no different from evicting your from your house, preventing you from voting, from traveling, or from speaking; all fundamental parts of living in civil society that should not happen by fiat. I disagree that respondents should be treated like employees (who can be fired for cause or at will) because a respondent expelled sees his life ruined while an employee fired survives and probably has unemployment insurance. In addition, the experience of actual litigation from Title IX respondents clearly shows that if left to their own means, without due process, the school’s Title IX staff will act unfairly to the respondent. See, for example: Jauregui Law Office Quora Answer to "why is it that men sue their school under Title IX more often than women?" — Student Sexual Misconduct and Title IX Discipline Defense Lawyers

The new Title IX regulations implement common sense legal principles. They do not “go too far.” These principles maybe place more responsibilities on complainants. But they are not unfair or in any way out of touch with what complainants will normally face when they continue their lives in the U.S. See for example of what the new regs will actually look like: Which Standard of Proof do Schools use in Title IX Sexual Misconduct Proceedings and did DeVos Change That? — Student Sexual Misconduct and Title IX Discipline Defense Lawyers

Finally, DeVos actually has not gone “too far” in the sense that she and the Department of Education followed with care the process to issue the Title IX regulations. See, for example: What are the new Title IX sexual misconduct rules about and will schools need to follow them? — Student Sexual Misconduct and Title IX Discipline Defense Lawyers

Raul Jauregui

I am an attorney and I defend mostly respondents of sexual misconduct in colleges or universities. This is absolutely not my legal opinion or my legal advice, but rather survey of the Title IX topic. If you’re in this situation, in any way, consult a lawyer now.

As posted in Quora:

https://www.quora.com/Do-you-agree-with-U-S-Rep-Elissa-Slotkin-that-Education-Secretary-Betsy-DeVos-has-gone-to-far-in-her-changes-to-Title-IX-that-will-among-other-things-increase-the-due-process-rights-of-the-accused-on-college/answer/Raul-Jauregui-1