Institutions are shielded from liability under Title IX when
they take timely and reasonable measures in response to claims of
sexual harassment. However, institutions can be held liable for
subsequent conduct if they fail to take action when on notice that
existing measures are ineffective. Wills v. Brown
Univ., 184 F.3d 20, 26 (1st Cir. 1999); Vance v. Spencer
City Pub. Sch. Dist., 231 F.3d 253, 260 (6th Cir.
2000)("[w]here a school district has actual knowledge that its
efforts to remediate are ineffective, and it continues to use those
same methods to no avail, such district has failed to act
reasonably in light of the known circumstances").
For example, in Leader v. Harvard University Board of
Overseers (D. Mass. Mar. 17, 2017), the Court allowed a former
student's Title IX claim to move forward based on allegations
that the school took no action to address her complaints of
continuing harassment during the course of the school's
investigation into her initial complaint of sexual harassment.
The Court noted that although the school may have met its
obligation to respond to the student's initial complaint, the
allegations that the school failed to effectively respond to
harassment occurring after her initial complaint were sufficient to
allow her Title IX claim to survive a motion to dismiss. Id at
10.
Client Tip: Institutions should review measures taken in response to sexual misconduct claims to ensure their effectiveness and communicate with complainants both during Title IX proceedings and following the outcome of the process in order to monitor changes in circumstances which may require modification of existing interim and remedial measures or the implementation of new measures.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
