Court Cases

Education news, analysis, and opinion about lawsuits and legal proceedings
The entrance to the boy's and girl's restrooms at Gloucester High School in on Nov. 15, 2016.
The entrance to the boy's and girl's restrooms at Gloucester High School in Gloucester, Va., is seen on Nov. 15, 2016. A Virginia circuit court dismissed a lawsuit that challenged state guidelines meant to protect transgender students.
Joe Fudge/Daily Press via TNS
Equity & Diversity Fight Over Transgender Student Policies Moves to Virginia's School Boards
A judge dismissed a lawsuit that sought to challenge a set of state guidelines meant to protect Virginia’s transgender students.
Matt Jones, Daily Press, July 29, 2021
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3 min read
Image shows a courtroom and gavel.
imaginima/E+
Law & Courts California COVID-19 Closures Infringed Private School Parents' Rights, Federal Court Rules
A federal appeals court holds that the state's closure rules for private schools were not narrowly tailored to serve compelling interests.
Mark Walsh, July 26, 2021
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4 min read
Image of a gavel.
Marilyn Nieves/E+
Law & Courts 'I Just Want to Play.' Judge Halts W. Va. Law Barring Transgender Girls From Girls' Sports
Ruling for an 11-year-old transgender girl, the judge holds that the law likely violates the equal-protection clause and Title IX.
Mark Walsh, July 22, 2021
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3 min read
Bremerton High School assistant football coach Joe Kennedy, center in blue, kneels and prays after his team lost to Centralia in Bremerton, Wash., on Oct. 16, 2015. Kennedy, who was suspended for praying at midfield after games, has filed a discrimination complaint on Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2015 with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission according to The Liberty Institute, a Texas-based law firm representing the coach.
Joe Kennedy, center in blue, kneels and prays after a game in October 2015 when he was the assistant football coach at Bremerton High School in Bremerton, Wash. In a long-running legal fight, Kennedy contends he has First Amendment free-speech and free-exercise-of-religion rights to express his Christian faith while on the job. The case is likely headed back to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Lindsey Wasso/The Seattle Times via AP
Law & Courts Praying Coach v. District That Suspended Him: What's Next in Fight Over Religious Expression
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit declined to reconsider an earlier panel ruling that sided with the school district.
Mark Walsh, July 20, 2021
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4 min read
Image of a gavel.
Marilyn Nieves/E+
Law & Courts Appeals Court Again Backs Transgender Student, But on Narrower Grounds Amid Signs of Rift
A federal appeals panel removed a holding for student Drew Adams based on Title IX, perhaps to ward off a rehearing by the full court.
Mark Walsh, July 14, 2021
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4 min read
Indiana's attorney general Todd Rokita speaks at a news conference on Sept. 16, 2020, in Indianapolis. Rokita filed a lawsuit against a group of online charter schools accused of defrauding the state out of millions of dollars Thursday, July 8, 2021.
Indiana's attorney general Todd Rokita speaks at a news conference on Sept. 16, 2020, in Indianapolis.
Darron Cummings/AP
School Choice & Charters Virtual Charters in Hot Water Again. Accusations of Fraud Prompt $150M Lawsuit
Indiana officials seek to recoup more than $150 million they say was either wrongly obtained or misspent by a consortium of virtual schools.
Arika Herron, The Indianapolis Star, July 12, 2021
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2 min read
This June 17, 2019, photo shows 5-mg pills of Oxycodone.
This June 17, 2019, photo shows 5-mg pills of Oxycodone.
Keith Srakocic/AP
Law & Courts Schools Will Get At Least $25 Million From Opioid Lawsuit
Lawyers are aiming to place significantly more money into the grant program as school districts' lawsuits against opioid companies continue.
Mark Lieberman, July 9, 2021
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3 min read
Pharmaceuticals are seen in North Andover, Mass. on June 15, 2018.
Pharmaceuticals are seen in North Andover, Mass. on June 15, 2018.<br/>
Elise Amendola/AP
Law & Courts The List of Districts Suing Opioid Companies Is Growing. Do They Stand a Chance?
Schools hope the companies will help pay for the costs of educating and supporting children affected by the ongoing addiction crisis.
Mark Lieberman, July 6, 2021
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2 min read
Collage showing two boys in classroom during pandemic wearing masks with cropped photo of feet and arrows going in different directions.
Collage by Gina Tomko/EducationWeek (Images: Getty)
School Choice & Charters How the Pandemic Helped Fuel the Private School Choice Movement
State lawmakers got a new talking point as they pushed to create and expand programs to send students to private schools.
Evie Blad, July 2, 2021
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8 min read
The Supreme Court is seen at sundown in Washington on Nov. 6, 2020.
The Supreme Court is seen at sundown in Washington on Nov. 6, 2020.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Law & Courts Supreme Court to Weigh Maine's Exclusion of Religious Schools From 'Tuitioning' Program
The justices will decide whether a tuition aid program for towns without public high schools must include religious schools.
Mark Walsh, July 2, 2021
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8 min read
In this June 8, 2021 photo, with dark clouds overhead, the Supreme Court is seen in Washington.
In this June 8, 2021 photo, with dark clouds overhead, the Supreme Court is seen in Washington.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Law & Courts The Supreme Court and Education: What Happened in the 2020-21 Term
The justices issued decisions on student speech, college athletics, legal challenges to school policies, Obamacare, and juvenile justice.
Mark Walsh, July 1, 2021
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3 min read
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Law & Courts Video The Supreme Court's Vulgar Snapchat Ruling and What It Means for Students' Free Speech
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of a former high school cheerleader after she was suspended from the team over a vulgar Snapchat post. Here's what the high court said.
Eric Harkleroad, July 1, 2021
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4:00
Gavin Grimm, who has become a national face for transgender students, speaks during a news conference held by The ACLU and the ACLU of Virginia at Slover Library in Norfolk, Va on July 23, 2019.
As a high school student, Virginia teenager Gavin Grimm challenged his school district's policy limiting which restrooms may be used by transgender students.
Kristen Zeis/The Daily Press via AP
Law & Courts High Court Declines to Hear School Board Challenge to Scope of Transgender Student Rights
With two justices dissenting, the court refused to take up a Virginia district's defense of its restroom policy for transgender students.
Mark Walsh, June 28, 2021
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3 min read
Members of the Supreme Court pose for a group photo at the Supreme Court in Washington on April 23, 2021.
Members of the Supreme Court pose for a group photo in Washington in April.
Erin Schaff/The New York Times via AP
Law & Courts Educators Look for Guideposts in Supreme Court Ruling on Student Free Speech
Measured responses greet a ruling that a district violated a student’s rights when it disciplined her for a vulgar Snapchat video.
Denisa R. Superville, June 23, 2021
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6 min read
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