Columbia University has settled a lawsuit filed by a student over its handling of a sexual assault allegation. The lawsuit was dismissed in 2016 on the grounds that his claims did not constitute sex-based discrimination. He refiled the lawsuit and it was dismissed in 2017, a decision he appealed. While the appeal was pending his lawyer said he began talking to Columbia about a possible resolution. The controversy has become yet another footnote in the ongoing debate over university investigations, known as Title IX investigations for the federal civil rights law that forbids gender-based harassment. It's an issue that new
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has prioritized in "listening sessions" across the country, pitting due process rights of the accused against concerns for survivors' safety and well-being while investigations are pending.