January 17, 2025

Update: Court Enjoins Latest Title IX Rules, Including Ombuds Confidentiality

A decision last week by a federal district court in Kentucky effectively bars the U.S. Department of Education from implementing its 2024 Title IX rules nationwide. Ruling in Tennessee v. Cardona, the court found the Department's 2024 rules to be unconstitutional and in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act. With this ruling, schools are likely to revert to the 2020 regulations, which did not explicitly recognize Ombuds' confidentiality. The decision likely reverses progress made in recognizing Ombuds as a confidential resource for students—a designation IOA had long advocated.

This shift also raises complex questions about how institutions should handle ongoing and past cases that were managed under the now-invalidated 2024 rules. Ombuds should stay informed and engage with legal counsel to understand how these changes may impact their work and the communities they support. Ombuds should be prepared to navigate shifting policies and collaborate with administrators to clarify their role under the reinstated 2020 Title IX regulations. (Tennessee v. Cardona; ATIXA Blog.)
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1 comment:

  1. Reese1/18/2025 4:19 AM

    I just reviewed the guidance from IOA from back in 2020 (see the post IOA Posts Recommendations on Updated Title IX Regulations) and look forward to any new guidance IOA shares. I don't believe my own Ombuds practice will be impacted by this invalidation of the 2024 rules in part because our office was created prior to the 2020 Title IX rules and Virginia Tech explicitly and intentionally defined the Ombuds as having no authority with regard to Title IX or the Clery Act (i.e. receiving notice of claims, instituting corrective measures, etc.).

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