NEWS

Settling sex assault lawsuits costs universities millions

Anita Wadhwani
awadhwani@tennessean.com
University of Tennessee Neyland Stadium

The $2.48 million payout to end a sexual assault lawsuit against the University of Tennessee is the latest in a spate of settlements entered into by colleges and universities across the country faced with a growing number of similar legal challenges in recent years.

Universities are spending millions of dollars to settle such cases, often with stipulations not to discuss details. In some instances, that provides a shield of secrecy for the schools about alleged assaults, athletes and students involved and how the incidents were handled by administrators and coaches.

Colleges and universities say they are settling such suits in an effort to avoid protracted and expensive litigation, negative publicity and public trials.

"One side ultimately would have won in court several years from now, and we felt confident about our legal position, but I truly believe that both sides would have lost," said Raja Jubran, UT Board vice chairman, of the settlement with the eight women who filed suit. "The intangible costs of emotional stress to those involved and the distraction to all of our positive progress at UT, over and above the actual legal costs, would have been exorbitant."

Just this year, female students have filed suit against Kansas State University, Baylor University, the University of Virginia and others.

Timeline of the lawsuit alleging a 'hostile sexual environment' at Tennessee

Male students accused of sexual misconduct have also filed suit against Yale, the University of Colorado at Boulder, the University of Southern California, Columbia University and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, alleging their due process rights were violated in campus disciplinary processes.

The most notable settlements include:

  • In January, Florida State University settled a lawsuit brought by a former female student over its handling of sexual assault allegations against former football player Jameis Winston for $950,000.
  • In August 2015, the University of Oregon settled a lawsuit brought by a female student who said she was gang-raped by three basketball players for $800,000.
  • In July 2014, the University of Connecticut agreed to pay $1.28 million to settle a lawsuit filed by five students who alleged the school treated their claims of sexual assault and harassment with indifference.
  • In September 2013, Occidental College agreed to a confidential settlement with 37 students and alumni over allegations the school deliberately discouraged women from reporting sexual assaults.
  • In 2007 the University of Colorado reached a $2.5 million settlement with a former female student who alleged she had been raped at a party attended by football players.

One expert in Title IX, the federal policy spelling out how schools must respond to sexual violence allegations, says the $2.48 million settlement in the UT case is a “good deal” for the university, which estimated it could spend up to $5.5 million in legal fees defending the case, which was scheduled to go to trial in 2018.

“It’s not a remarkably high amount given it will be split among eight,” said Christina Mancini, associate professor at the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Timeline: Sexual assault incidents at University of Tennessee

The $2.48 million settlement, nevertheless, represents one of the largest Title IX settlements in recent years.

“It’s not record-breaking, but it is among the highest that have ever been publicized in multi-victim cases,” said Brett Sokolow, president and CEO of the National Center for Higher Education Risk Management, which consults with colleges and universities about their sexual assault and other policies.

While no details are available on how the payout will be divided between the plaintiffs, attorney fees in such settlements often reach 40 percent. If the payout were equally divided among all the plaintiffs after attorney fees are paid, the women would each receive about $186,000. It is likely, however, some plaintiffs will receive more and some less, depending on the severity of individual claims

Sokolow said the approximately $180,000 per person is in line with other mass settlements at other colleges, which result in less of a payout per person than when a single individual files suit.

As one condition of the settlement, the university has agreed to appoint a special commission to examine all University of Tennessee campuses’ response to sexual assault allegations.

“We don’t see that very often,” Sokolow said. “Usually, a university will commit to some changes, but the idea of an independent commission is a fairly unusual condition that universities are not usually willing to agree to.”

Sexual violence lawsuits against colleges and universities have become increasingly frequent in the past two years.

In 2011 the federal government issued a directive known as a “Dear Colleague” letter requiring colleges and universities to place more emphasis on addressing sexual assault and harassment.

In the three years that followed, students turned to the federal government’s complaint process to report violations of Title IX.

But the slowness with which the federal Office of Civil Rights has responded has led more students — both those accused of misconduct and alleged victims — to turn to civil courts, Sokolow said.

While one of the conditions of UT’s settlement is that the plaintiffs withdraw two complaints lodged with the Office of Civil Rights, a spokesman said Tuesday that withdrawing a claim does not necessarily end federal action.

Violations of Title IX found by the Office of Civil Rights can result in a $35,000 penalty per violation. A single case can include multiple violations.

Neena Chaudhry, a Title IX expert with the National Women's Law Center, said that universities such as Tennessee have long been aware of the rules they must follow, and that any appointed commission should not delay any changes needed to make sure they are doing the right thing.

"The law has been around for a long time, and unfortunately sexual assaults are not new issues," she said, "and whatever schools need to do to make sure students are in as safe an environment as possible, that's what they should be doing. And that's what they should have been doing all along."

Reach Anita Wadhwani at 615-259-8092 or on Twitter @AnitaWadhwani.