Last Updated: August 20, 2024.
On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education (“Department”) released the long-awaited Final Rule to Title IX. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is a statute with corresponding regulations that protect people from being excluded, denied benefits, or subject to discrimination under any education program or activity “on the basis of sex.” These regulations apply to every school at the K-12 and postsecondary level that receives federal financial assistance.
Since their publication, the 2024 Title IX regulations have faced strong opposition by states and national advocacy organizations who argue that they violate the Administrative Procedures Act (“APA”) in that they are arbitrary and capricious and exceed agency authority, violate the First Amendment, and violate the Spending Clause. Twenty-six states and numerous private parties have filed or joined lawsuits seeking to block the implementation and enforcement of the Final Rule.
The litigation on the Title IX regulations is as follows:
| Case | Key Plaintiffs Involved | Result | Next Steps |
| Louisiana v. U.S. Department of Education No. 3:24-CV-00563, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana | Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, and Idaho | June 13, 2024: Preliminary injunction granted preventing the implementation and enforcement of the Final Rule in each of the four states. August 16, 2024: The Department’s application to the Supreme Court for partial stay of the preliminary injunction pending appeal was denied. | The Department has appealed the preliminary injunction to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (No. 24-30399). The Fifth Circuit denied the Department’s request to stay parts of the preliminary injunction. The Department’s brief is to be filed by August 28, 2024. |
| Tennessee v. Cardona No. 2:24-CV-00072 U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky | Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Virginia, and West Virginia | June 17, 2024: Preliminary injunction granted preventing the implementation and enforcement of the Final Rule against these 6 states. August 16, 2024: The Department’s application to the Supreme Court for partial stay of the preliminary injunction pending appeal was denied. | The Department has appealed the preliminary injunction to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (No. 24-5588). The Sixth Circuit denied the Department’s request to stay parts of the preliminary injunction pending the appeal but agreed to expedite the appeal and hear the case during its October sitting. |
| Kansas v. U.S. Department of Education No. 5:24-cv-04041 U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas | The states of Kansas, Alaska, Utah, and Wyoming; three Plaintiff Organizations (Young America’s Foundation, Female Athletes United, and Moms for Liberty) | July 2, 2024: Preliminary injunction granted preventing the Department from implementing or enforcing the Final Rule in these 4 states and any school attended by current or prospective members of Young America’s Foundation or Female Athletes United, or by the children of the members of Moms for Liberty. | YAF and FAU have filed lists of public and private K-12 and postsecondary schools in 42 states and the District of Columbia. Moms for Liberty filed a separate list of K-12 schools subject to the preliminary injunction. The Department filed its appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (No. 24-3097). |
| Texas v. United States of America No. 2:24-CV-00086 U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas | Texas | July 11, 2024: Preliminary injunction granted in part preventing the Department from implementing or enforcing the Final Rule against the plaintiffs (the State of Texas, and two professors at the University of Texas-Austin). | |
| Alabama v. Cardona No. 7:24-cv-00533 U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama | Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina | April 29, 2024: Complaint filed. July 30, 2024: Motion for preliminary injunction denied. July 31, 2024: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit granted the plaintiffs’ request for an administrative injunction, enjoining the enforcement of the regulations in the plaintiff states pending appeal of the preliminary injunction denial. | The appellants brief on the appeal of the preliminary injunction denial (No. 24-12444) is ordered to be complete by September 9, 2024. Enforcement of the regulations is administratively enjoined by Eleventh Circuit in the plaintiff states pending resolution of the appeal. |
| Oklahoma v. Cardona No. 5:24-cv-00461 U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma | Oklahoma | May 6, 2024: Complaint filed. July 31, 2024: Preliminary Injunction granted preventing implementation and enforcement of the Final Rule in Oklahoma. | |
| Arkansas v. U.S. Department of Education No. 4:24-CV-00636 U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri | Arkansas, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota | May 7, 2024: Complaint filed. July 24, 2024: Preliminary injunction granted preventing enforcement “against” the plaintiff states. |
What does this mean for you?
Each injunction is unique in its scope and coverage. Generally, the Department cannot enforce the 2024 Title IX regulations against schools—including colleges and universities—located in states subject to a preliminary injunction or administrative injunction. As these injunctions may still be reversed or modified on appeal, schools located in these states should work with legal counsel to determine how the Final Rule and any injunction may impact their policies and procedures regarding reports and complaints of sex-based harassment and sex discrimination occurring after August 1, 2024.
Generally, schools located in states not subject to an injunction must be in compliance with the Final Rule by August 1, 2024. Each school across the country, however, should work with legal counsel to determine if they are named on the lists filed in Kansas v. Department of Education and, thus, are covered by the scope of the injunction preventing the enforcement of the Final Rule against members of the Plaintiff Organizations.
This blog post was thoughtfully prepared with assistance from Husch Blackwell summer associate McKale Walker.