TITLE VI CLAIM AGAINST UC BERKELEY LAW SCHOOL

On 18 November 2022, a groundbreaking complaint was filed with the US Department of Education Office of Human Rights against the University of California, Berkeley Law School, over the August 2022 discriminatory decision of at least 9 student groups to adopt a bylaw excluding Zionist speakers.

The International Legal Forum, together with Gabriel Groisman, a Florida-based attorney and partner at LSN Law, PA, submitted the joint complaint, which alleges that the bylaw represents “profound and deep-seated antisemitic discrimination” against Jewish students, faculty and staff at UC Berkeley Law School.

The complaint has been filed pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act (1964), which prohibits recipients of federal funding from discriminating on the basis of “race, color, and national origin”, and requests the Office of Civil Rights to open an investigation against the UC Berkeley Law, to direct it to immediately invalidate the bylaw in question, and to adopt a number of additional remedies.

On 13 December 2022, the Office of Civil Rights confirmed that it will launch a formal investigation against UC Berkeley, in response to our claim, including whether the University failed to respond appropriately to the adoption of the by-law.