Category: Title IX

Title IX Team Lead, Arthur Bryant, Featured in ON3 NIL: “Why Title IX and NIL are ‘about to collide'”

Arthur Bryant, Bailey Glasser partner and Title IX team leader, spoke with On3 NIL on the upcoming reckoning between NIL and Title IX.

“NIL and Title IX are about to collide – and it’s just a question of when and where,” Bryant told On3. “Title IX says schools have to provide male student-athletes and female student-athletes with equal treatment and benefits, and almost no school in the country is doing that now without NIL. With NIL, it is far, far worse.”

Bryant, “widely viewed as the nation’s foremost Title IX expert,” has represented more women athletes and potential athletes in Title IX litigation against schools than any lawyer in the country and currently represents female student-athletes in a Title IX sex discrimination lawsuits against San Diego State University and Fresno State among others.

Whether you look at NIL separately from everything else involving schools’ athletic programs or you combine it, Bryant said, schools are treating men and women “dramatically differently – and that is a straight-out violation of Title IX.”

Read the full article here.
#TitleIX #TitleIXAthletics #NIL

Precedent-Setting Title IX Case Against SDSU Moves Forward

Bailey Glasser’s Title IX team obtained a hard-fought pretrial victory in the precedent-setting lawsuit against San Diego State University for discriminating against its female student-athletes. Late Friday afternoon, September 15, 2023, a U.S. District Court judge issued a decision on SDSU’s motion to dismiss, holding that all 17 women suing SDSU can seek damages for being deprived of equal athletic financial aid.

“This is a huge victory for the women athletes and everyone who cares about stopping sex discrimination at SDSU and nationwide,” said Arthur Bryant, Bailey Glasser partner and Title IX team leader. “The school has cheated its female student-athletes out of millions of dollars of equal athletic financial aid in the past few years alone—and it still hasn’t changed its ways.”

The court’s ruling on Friday also rejected SDSU’s argument that, because the case had already taken so long that the women are no longer student-athletes, they could not seek a court order stopping the school from discriminating in the future.

“This critical ruling confirms what we’ve said all along—these brave women deserve their day in court to hold SDSU accountable for its past discriminatory behavior and to prevent it from engaging in discriminatory behavior in the future,” said Bailey Glasser partner Joshua Hammack.

The women are also represented by Bailey Glasser partners Lori Bullock and Cary Joshi, along with co-counsel Amber Eck and Jenna Rangel of Haeggquist & Eck, LLP, and David S. Casey, Jr. and Gayle Blatt of Casey Gerry.

Read the full press release and court order here.

#TitleIX #TitleIXAthletics #SDSU #BaileyGlasser

18 Public Interest Groups File Brief in Federal Appeal Supporting Title IX Challenge to Fresno State

Equal Rights Advocates and 17 other public interest groups have filed an amici brief with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals supporting the Fresno State Title IX appeal by female student-athletes fighting for gender equality for all women athletes at the school.

The brief submitted by ERA argues that the lower court’s decision – ruling that student-athletes from one team cannot file class action lawsuits on behalf of women athletes on other teams – goes against the very spirit of Title IX as Congress defined it 50 years ago, as well as decades of established Title IX legal precedent.

“We and our clients are extremely grateful that ERA and these 17 groups dedicated to gender equity are supporting this critical appeal,” said lead counsel Arthur Bryant of Bailey & Glasser, LLP, who is representing the women along with Joshua Hammack, Cary Joshi, and Lori Bullock of Bailey Glasser and Cynthia Chapman, Mike Caddell, and Amy Tabor of Caddell & Chapman.

The amici curiae joining in the brief are:

Equal Rights Advocates
American Association of University Women
American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California
American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island
California Women’s Law Center
End Rape On Campus
Family Violence Appellate Project
Family Violence Law Center
Legal Aid at Work
Legal Momentum, The Women’s Legal Defense and Education Fund
National Organization for Women
Public Counsel
Southwest Women’s Law Center
The Drake Group, Inc.
VOICEINSPORT
VOICEINSPORT Foundation
Women’s Law Project
Women’s Sports Foundation

Follow the link to read more about the brief submitted by the amici and to read Plaintiffs’ opening brief.

Bailey Glasser’s Title IX Team’s Latest Victory in SDSU Lawsuit Featured in Ms. Magazine

“SDSU has been cheating its female student-athletes out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in equal athletic financial aid each year… Now, it can be held accountable,” said Arthur Bryant, Bailey Glasser LLP partner and Title IX team leader representing the female athletes in the lawsuit against the university.

Bailey Glasser’s Title IX team’s latest victory in SDSU’s women-athletics lawsuit is featured today in the Ms. Magazine article: “Student-Athletes Can Now Sue Discriminatory Universities for Money Damages, a Victory for Title IX.”

“The class-action lawsuit alleges female student-athletes were given less scholarship support than the male athletes, received inferior treatment and benefits and were retaliated against when they protested against discrimination.” U.S. District Court Judge Todd W. Robinson’s ruling on April 13 “agreed their suit could go forward and went a step further—awarding the students the right to seek monetary damages.” Arthur Bryant is quoted stating that the ruling “is a major step forward for women and against sex discrimination at SDSU and nationwide.” Read the full article here.

The plaintiffs are represented by Bailey Glasser’s Arthur Bryant, Lori Bullock in Des Moines, IA, and Cary Joshi and Joshua Hammack in Washington, DC, along with co-counsel Jenna Rangel and Amber Eck of Haeggquist & Eck, LLP, and David S. Casey, Jr., and Gayle Blatt of Casey Gerry in San Diego. #TitleIX #Athletics #Equality #SDSU #sandiegostate #baileyglasser

Title IX Sex Discrimination Case Against SDSU Moving Forward on All Counts: Equal Athletic Financial Aid, Retaliation, and Equal Treatment


Justice marches forward: U.S. District Court Judge Todd W. Robinson held yesterday that the female student-athletes suing San Diego State University (SDSU) for violating Title IX can pursue all three of their claims – for equal athletic financial aid, equal treatment, and retaliation. The decision is the first in the nation to hold that female student-athletes deprived of equal athletic financial aid can sue their schools for damages.

“This is a major step forward for women and against sex discrimination at SDSU and nationwide,” said Arthur H. Bryant of Bailey & Glasser, LLP, in Oakland, CA, lead counsel for the women. “When we filed these claims, I said SDSU seemed to be aiming for the Title IX sex discrimination trifecta. It has been cheating its female student-athletes out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in equal athletic financial aid each year. It is giving its male student-athletes far better treatment than its female student-athletes. And it blatantly retaliated against its female student-athletes for standing up for their rights. Now, it can be held accountable.”

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits all educational institutions that receive federal funds, including SDSU, from discriminating on the basis of sex. It requires schools to provide male and female student-athletes with equal opportunities, athletic financial aid, and treatment, and prohibits them from retaliating against anyone for challenging sex discrimination at the school.

On November 1, 2022, the Court denied SDSU’s motion to dismiss the women’s equal treatment claims, but entered an order dismissing the equal athletic financial aid and retaliation claims unless the women provided more details to support them. The Court’s April 12, 2023, ruling allows all three claims to proceed, although it limits the ability of some of the women to pursue some of the claims. To read more click here.

The Bailey Glasser team in this matter also includes partner Joshua Hammack, who briefed and argued the Motion to Dismiss; partner Lori Bullock in our Des Moines, Iowa office; and partner and Commercial and Environmental Practice Group Leader Cary Joshi.

Partner Arthur Bryant Quoted in Sportico

Bailey & Glasser, LLP partner and Title IX team leader Arthur Bryant was quoted in today’s Sportico article, “SDSU’s Final Four Glory, Title IX Quandary Take Competing Courts.” The article examines the overwhelming excitement of the San Diego State men’s basketball team reaching the Final Four this year for the first time in school history, while simultaneously highlighting the contrasting experience for female athletes “on the pumpkin side of the university’s athletic fairytale.”

In early 2022, Bailey Glasser’s Title IX team representing 17 women athletes filed a sex discrimination class action lawsuit against SDSU for violating Title IX laws. The suit charges SDSU with depriving women of more than $1.2 million in “equal athletic financial aid” over the course of two academic years, depriving them of equal treatment, and retaliating against them for standing up for their rights. According to Sportico, “the men’s basketball Final Four bid has already netted SDSU an extra $500,000 in future NCAA Tournament distributions.” Yet, as Bryant points out, “SDSU is clearly treating its male athletes better than its female athletes… which violates Title IX.” Bryant adds that “SDSU’s men and women all deserve the same shot at that one shining moment.”

The plaintiffs are represented by Bailey Glasser’s Arthur Bryant, Lori Bullock in Des Moines, IA, and Cary Joshi and Joshua Hammack in Washington, DC, along with co-counsel Jenna Rangel and Amber Eck of Haeggquist & Eck, LLP, and David S. Casey, Jr., and Gayle Blatt of Casey Gerry in San Diego.

To read the article, please click here.

“Enough Is Enough”: Female Athletes Secure Settlement Agreement Ensuring Michigan State University’s Title IX Compliance for Years to Come

“Enough is enough” – a two-year battle ended with Michigan State University agreeing to undergo a comprehensive Gender Equity Review and create a Gender Equity Plan to bring it into full Title IX compliance by the 2026-27 academic year. This settlement will positively shape MSU’s athletics program for years to come. Bailey Glasser partners Lori Bullock and Joshua Hammack fought tenaciously to get justice for the MSU female student-athletes and were ready to go to trial in February before MSU decided to settle.

U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Michigan State University’s Appeal, Allowing Title IX Discrimination Case to Proceed


In a Title IX victory for women student-athletes, BG partners Lori Bullock and Josh Hammack successfully defeated cert in the U.S. Supreme Court after the high court rejected Michigan State University’s petition to review the Sixth Circuit’s ruling. This denial from the U.S. Supreme Court paves the way for the Title IX discrimination suit to proceed for the female swimmers and divers who allege MSU violated Title IX by not providing enough opportunities for women athletes to participate in sports.

Title IX Suit Filed Against the University of Central Oklahoma


Varsity women athletes at the University of Central Oklahoma (UCO) filed a class sex discrimination lawsuit against the school today for violating Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 by treating its female student-athletes much worse than its male student-athletes and retaliating against them for seeking equal treatment. Title IX, a federal civil rights law, prohibits sex discrimination at UCO and all educational institutions that receive federal funds.

The female student-athletes who filed the suit are members of the women’s cross country, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field teams at UCO, which—unlike any men’s teams—are provided no locker room, no competitive facility, and required to practice at a local middle school. When they complained about the unequal treatment they and other women athletes received, UCO fired their head coach.

“UCO’s second-class treatment of its female student-athletes and retaliation against them for seeking equal treatment are both blatant violations of Title IX, “ said Bailey Glasser partner Arthur H. Bryant, lead counsel for the women. “The women on the track & field and cross country teams make up 35% of UCO’s female student-athletes and are treated far worse than all of its male student-athletes. The men on the football and wrestling teams make up 69% of UCO’s male student-athletes and are treated far better than all of its female student-athletes. It is hard to imagine a clearer case of unequal treatment. UCO’s retaliation against the women for challenging its flagrant sex discrimination shows how bad things are. Why is UCO so opposed to equality?”

Read on …

Arthur Bryant Receives First-Ever Public Justice Legacy Award

Congratulations to BG partner Arthur Bryant for being honored with the first-ever Legacy Award from Public Justice. The former Chairman and Executive Director of Public Justice, Arthur is being lauded for the 35 years he spent building this nonprofit legal advocacy organization from two staff (him and the receptionist) to the public interest powerhouse it is today. Arthur has won major victories and established precedents in constitutional law, consumer protection, civil rights, workers’ rights, toxic tort, class action, mass tort, and access to justice litigation nationwide. The National Law Journal twice named him one of the 100 Most Influential Attorneys in America and recently honored him as a 2021 Trailblazer in Sports Law for his landmark work fighting sex discrimination in sports.

In the past two years, Arthur and his co-counsel have won Title IX settlements preserving women’s (and men’s) intercollegiate athletic opportunities and advancing gender equity at Brown University, the College of William & Mary, Clemson University, the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, East Carolina University, the University of St. Thomas, La Salle University, Dartmouth College, and Dickinson College. Arthur has successfully represented more female (and male) athletes and potential athletes in Title IX litigation against schools and universities than any lawyer in the country.

%d bloggers like this: