Education / Schools, Quote of the Day, Sex

Good News For Columbia In A Controversial Case

And congrats to the prominent Columbia Law alum who handled the matter.

onMarch 14, 2016 at 2:06 PM

Emma Sulkowicz carrying her mattress (by Adam Sherman via Wikimedia)

Nungesser’s argument rests on a logical fallacy. He assumes that because the allegations against him concerned a sexual act that everything that follows from it is “sex-based” within the meaning of Title IX. He is wrong. Taken to its logical extreme, Nungesser’s position would lead to the conclusion that those who commit, or are accused of committing, sexual assault are a protected class under Title IX. The statute does not permit that result.

— Judge Gregory H. Woods (S.D.N.Y.), dismissing the case brought by Paul Nungesser against his alma mater, Columbia University. Nungesser, accused of rape by classmate Emma Sulkowicz (aka “Mattress Girl”), sued Columbia, alleging that the university’s handling of Sulkowicz’s claims constituted sex discrimination against him.

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(You can read the full ruling here. Congratulations to Roberta Kaplan, our 2013 Lawyer of the Year, and her colleagues at Paul Weiss, who were specifically retained for this engagement. Kaplan is a 1991 graduate of Columbia Law.)