Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit defending the Department of Education’s reaffirmation of Title IX’s commitment to protecting students from actual harassment while upholding free speech and due process. The Department of Education’s “Final Rule,” which was announced in 2020, bolsters the anti-discrimination purpose of Title IX without infringing on the constitutional rights afforded to all Americans.
“The Constitution applies to every American and the Supreme Court has long recognized that students subject to disciplinary proceedings are entitled to due process. Without safeguards, academic institutions can and have eschewed due process and imposed life-altering consequences on students without affording them the opportunity to defend themselves,” said Attorney General Paxton. “It is imperative that academic institutions combat sexual harassment without sacrificing students’ constitutional rights to free speech, due process, and fair trial. The Department of Education’s ‘Final Rule’ provides robust protection for individual rights and must be upheld.”
The vast majority of colleges and universities currently deny students the right to present evidence or cross examine witnesses, and less than half require that fact-finders be impartial during investigation.
Read a copy of the filing here.
Read a copy of the Department of Education’s Final Rule here.