On Aug. 7, 2025, President Donald Trump issued a presidential memorandum entitled “Ensuring Transparency in Higher Education Admissions,” directing the Secretary of Education to “expand the scope of required Integrated...more
On July 30, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice issued a Guidance for Recipients of Federal Funding Regarding Unlawful Discrimination, warning that many programs and initiatives labeled as Diversity, Equity and Inclusion...more
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), as passed by the House of Representatives on May 22, 2025, contains a provision that would modify the excise tax paid by certain private colleges and universities on net investment...more
On May 6, 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a Dear Colleague Letter on Nondiscrimination Requirements for Medical Schools on the Basis of Race, Color, and National Origin pursuant to Students...more
On April 25, 2025, the Department of Justice announced in federal court that many students studying in the United States on F-1 visas whose status was recently changed to “Terminated” for “criminal records” reasons will have...more
On Jan. 27, 2025, the Office of Management and Budget issued a memorandum to all executive departments and agencies, including the U.S. Department of Education, requiring a temporary pause of federal financial assistance by...more
On Dec. 23, 2024, President Biden signed the Stop Campus Hazing Act (SCHA), amending the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). The SCHA requires recipients of federal...more
On Jan. 9, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky vacated the entire 2024 Title IX final rule in State of Tennessee v. Cardona, No. 2:24-00072 (Jan. 9, 2025). The Department of Education had issued...more
As McGuireWoods explained in previous alerts, the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. President & Fellows of Harvard College (SFFA) left open several questions on its impact on higher...more
In the wake of the newly adopted Biden-era Title IX regulations, one question that continues to prompt debate among educational institutions and courts alike is whether employees can sue their employers under Title IX of the...more
On July 11, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issued its long-awaited decision in Johnson, et al. v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, et al., holding that college athletes may be employees under...more
On March 27, 2024, in a long-awaited decision that carries major implications for 501(c)(3) organizations and independent schools, the Fourth Circuit held that an independent school’s 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status did not...more
On Aug. 14, 2023, the U.S. Departments of Justice and Education (DOJ and ED) issued guidance to institutions of higher learning concerning the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v....more
On July 3, 2023, just days after the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College (SFFA), a new challenge is arising related to collegiate admissions....more
7/7/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Equal Protection ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Race Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina ,
Title VI ,
Title VII
In November 2022, McGuireWoods reported on the evolving framework surrounding student-athletes’ ability to profit from their names, images and likenesses (NIL). Recent developments have given new life to the NIL legal...more
On April 6, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Department of Education addressed the treatment of transgender students in sports.
Specifically, in West Virginia, et al. v. B.P.J., by her next friend and mother,...more
The framework surrounding student-athletes’ ability to profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL) continues to evolve. Within the last several weeks, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) issued additional...more
Students at Loyola University Chicago — like students at many institutions across the country — brought a putative class action suit against Loyola for breach of contract and unjust enrichment after Loyola suspended all...more
On Jan. 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear two cases on the use of race in undergraduate admissions: one involving Harvard and the other involving the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill....more
In June 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court invited the Solicitor General of the United States to brief the court on the United States’ position on Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College. The...more