Updated Regulations
Updates
2024 Regulation Changes – Vacated January 9, 2025
In April 2024, the Department issued a Final Rule amending the Department’s regulations implementing Title IX. The 2024 Title IX Regulations took effect on August 1, 2024.
On January 9, 2025, a federal district court issued a decision vacating the 2024 Final Rule. Consistent with the court’s order, the 2024 Title IX regulations are not effective in any jurisdiction.
2021 Regulation Changes – Cardona Decision
Any party or witness may choose not to offer evidence and/or answer questions at the hearing, either because they do not attend the hearing, or because they attend but refuse to participate in some or all The Decision-maker can only rely on whatever relevant evidence is available through the investigation and hearing in making the ultimate determination of responsibility. The Decision- maker may not draw any inference solely from a party’s or witness’s absence from the hearing or refusal to submit to cross-examination or answer other questions. (ATIXA 2021)
2020 Regulations and Amendments
In May 2020, the Department issued a Final Rule amending the Department’s regulations implementing Title IX. The 2020 Title IX regulations took effect on August 14, 2020.
These Regulations established formal administrative standards for how educational institutions resolve allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct. The rules outlined specific procedural protections for both parties, including a presumption of non-responsibility for the respondent, equal access to evidence, and mandatory live hearings with an opportunity to question other parties in higher education. Under these regulations, the definition of sexual harassment was aligned with Supreme Court criterion. An institution’s mandatory jurisdiction is limited to incidents occurring within its official programs or activities within the United States, requiring a strict separation of roles between investigators and decision-makers to ensure an objective evaluation of evidence.