Education

Our interdisciplinary approach enables us to guide colleges, universities, academic medical centers, public and independent schools, and other educational institutions through the rapidly evolving field of education law. By combining our deep understanding of the education sector with knowledge from across the firm’s practices, we deliver innovative solutions that address the multifaceted legal, operational, financial, and regulatory challenges these institutions face.

We are particularly well-positioned to advise educational institutions on the complex issues surrounding recent Executive Orders and regulatory developments, including those impacting research funding, immigration, campus safety, and civil rights. We can help universities manage risk, ensure compliance, and develop strategic responses to emerging challenges.

Crowell’s Education team advises on a wide variety of matters, including:

• Government Contracts/Grants. We defend grantees in government investigations, audits, and suspension and debarment proceedings and counsel on cutting-edge legal issues that arise in this context, including those involving intellectual property rights, domestic sourcing restrictions, performance reporting, administration of subawards, program income, program integrity requirements, cost allowability and accounting, and conflicts of interest. When universities face terminations of existing grants, we can challenge these terminations on appeal and pursue litigation, where necessary, to protect their interests in court.
• Congressional Investigations. Crowell’s Congressional Investigations team has deep and extensive experience conducting and responding to congressional investigations and related criminal, civil, and other legal matters that impact corporations and individuals. Our team has decades of experience representing hundreds of corporations, officers and directors, government officials, and high-profile individuals in investigations before Congress, the SEC, the DOJ, the CFTC, and state attorneys general. Our broad bench of experience helps businesses and individuals navigate crises; protect brand, reputation, and sensitive business information; and mitigate overall exposure. We also can build high-tech, social media-savvy press teams to provide strategy and assistance in telling clients’ stories.
• Civil Rights Advising, Investigations, and Compliance. Our team has significant experience guiding universities through campus challenges related to discrimination and harassment, including antisemitism. We investigate sensitive student and faculty allegations, advising on the intersection of Title VI of the Higher Education Act (HEA) and academic freedom, and handle investigations by the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights. We also assist clients in crafting admissions policies that align with the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in SFFA v. President and Fellows of Harvard College.
• Title IX Litigation and Compliance. Our team provides experienced representation to universities involved in Title IX investigations, government enforcement proceedings, and litigation brought by individuals. We have extensive experience defending educational institutions against Title IX claims from both complainants and respondents arising out of student disciplinary proceedings, advising on evolving standards, and helping to develop sexual misconduct policies and adjudication procedures for students, faculty, and staff. In addition, we assist institutions through the regulatory rulemaking process, including preparation of comments and other submissions.
• Intellectual Property (IP). We represent educational institutions in the full scope of IP protection and commercialization matters. We assist numerous research universities in obtaining patents for inventions resulting from university research, advise on the licensing of trademarks and on the licensing and enforcement of patent portfolios, negotiate and draft complex licenses and technology transfer agreements, maximize universities’ return on investment to support tech transfer objectives, and counsel on trademark, copyright, and trade secret matters.
• Academic Medical Centers. Academic medical centers execute on their unique missions of education, research, and training while also competing as providers in the health care marketplace. We counsel these clients on traditional reimbursement, fraud and abuse, and commercial transaction issues including academic affiliation agreements. In addition, we provide legal advice on a variety of matters involving graduate medical education, scientific integrity, research objectivity, human subjects research under the Common Rule, FDA reporting obligations, the Shelby Amendment expansion of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), HIPAA compliance, inventorship and technology transfer, and the National Institute of Health (NIH) grants process. We also deal with antitrust issues in collaborative activities among research centers. As universities and research institutions navigate the implications of the U.S. BIOSECURE Act, our team uses our experience in government contracts to provide guidance on regulatory compliance.
• Student Affairs. In addition to the student conduct issues referenced above, we advise schools on regulation of students’ freedoms of expression and association, privacy of student health information and other personal data under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), and regulatory requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and similar provisions as to learning accommodations.
• Privacy and Cybersecurity. Our team guides colleges, universities, academic medical centers, and research institutions through the myriad federal and other laws governing the collection, use, and protection of data. We assess data flow and cybersecurity practices to strengthen defenses against cyber intrusions and identify and protect vulnerable and valuable digital information. We also assist with vendor oversight by evaluating existing contracts and developing improved procurement protocols. When data breaches involving personal information, trade secrets, and intellectual property occur, we help educational institutions manage these incidents by investigating the scope, determining whether individual and governmental notification is required, and defending federal and state enforcement actions and class actions.
• Foreign Influence and Affiliations. The increasing scrutiny of foreign relationships in higher education has prompted colleges, universities, and research institutions to reexamine their affiliations with foreign entities. We educate, counsel, and advise our clients on potential conflicts of interest, disclosure requirements, and compliance with federal regulations, including those related to the Economic Espionage Act (EEA) and federal fraud statutes. To guard against any potential legal exposure, we also work with our clients to adopt guidelines governing affiliations with foreign entities and to guard against potential insider threat cases where proprietary information may be at stake, including conducting internal investigations. Recently, we’ve seen heightened attention from regulatory bodies, including the U.S. House of Representatives’ Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, which has issued letters to several prominent universities regarding their relationships with PRC national students and faculty as well as collaborations with PRC-based universities. Our team is actively engaged with these issues, currently representing multiple universities in this context.
• Labor and Employment. We provide affirmative action and pay equity advice and counseling, conduct discrimination and harassment investigations, advise on promotion and tenure issues, and conduct labor negotiations. We also advise on compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and other wage/hour issues. We perform audits regarding a wide range of compliance obligations in advance of litigation or governmental investigations and advise on appropriate remedial actions and best practices. Our extensive experience handling complex labor disputes enables us to counsel universities with respect to collective bargaining negotiations and contract administration, including grievance arbitration. Further, we regularly advise on and conduct internal investigations related to current and historical sexual misconduct on campus and other forms of discrimination, abuse, or harassment, including inquiries related to the ADA, Title VI (with experience on discrimination claims based on national origin/antisemitism), Title VII, and Title IX, as well as other investigations initiated by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights.

Our Education Practice stays at the forefront of emerging issues in higher education, providing strategic guidance on a range of other issues, including eligibility issues regarding Title IV, health risks and liabilities pertaining to sports, lobbying and government ethics issues, renewable energy procurement, and the implications of artificial intelligence on academic integrity and intellectual property.