Bloomington Zoning Ordinance Unconstitutional Says Indiana Court Of Appeals

Sean P. Callan, Fraternal Law Partners, sean.callan@fraternallaw.com To say Indiana University (“IU”) aggressively sanctions fraternities and sororities may understate IU’s posture. In the 2019–2020 academic year, about half of IU Greek letter organizations, men’s and women’s groups, found themselves under...
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Federal Court Dismisses Attack on Single-Sex Membership of Fraternities at Yale

Clark Brown, General Counsel, North American Interfraternity Conference In 2018, several female Yale undergraduates, all members of a student group named Engender, brought claims for discrimination in a place of public accommodation in the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and...
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The First Convictions In The Death Of Collin Wiant Are In – More To Come

Tim Burke, Fraternal Law Partners, tburke@fraternallaw.com Collin Wiant died on November 12, 2018. On February 27, 2020, the first three of nine students charged in his hazing-related death plead guilty and were convicted. Dominic Figliola was convicted of hazing and...
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Lawsuit Filed Following Tragic Death At Cornell

Tim Burke, Fraternal Law Partners, tburke@fraternallaw.com To require or cajole a potential new member or pledge to drink anything to the point of being sick, especially alcohol, is the opposite of what brotherhood or sisterhood in a Greek organization should...
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Novel Corona Virus, COVID-19

Tim Burke, Fraternal Law Partners, tburke@fraternallaw.com You think you’ve heard enough?  No doubt in the days and weeks ahead you will hear a great deal more about the efforts to stop the spread of the disease, the effects of which...
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Defendants in Andrew Coffey Hazing Death Sent Back to Trial Court to Face Felony Charges

Tim Burke, Manley Burke LPA, tburke@manleyburke.com At the party, the victim’s Big Brother provided him with “a family bottle” of bourbon and told him that it was an expectation to finish the family bottle. Many Pledges drank to the point...
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Emotional Support Bunny Case Has Settled

Ilana Linder, Manley Burke LPA, ilana.linder@manleyburke.com Alpha Omicron Pi Fraternity (“AOPi”) and Alpha Omicron Pi Properties, Inc. (“AOPi Properties”) have agreed to amend the sorority’s no-pet policy as part of a settlement related to a federal discrimination lawsuit filed against...
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FIRE Responds to Ohio University’s Unconstitutional Restrictions

Tim Burke, Manley Burke LPA, tburke@manleyburke.com The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) weighed in on how Ohio University [OU] initially handled its broad investigation into alleged instances of misconduct by fraternities, three sororities, the University band, and its...
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Pennsylvania Appellate Court Issues Two Decisions Protecting Fraternity Houses from New Zoning Requirements

Tim Burke, Manley Burke LPA, tburke@manleyburke.com Increasingly, local zoning codes are being used to attempt to close fraternity and sorority chapter houses. In recent years, some municipalities have added provisions to their zoning codes defining fraternity and sorority houses as...
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Details Emerge on Bogenberger Settlement

Tim Burke, Manley Burke, tburke@manleyburke.com In its January 2019 issue, Fraternal Law reported on the settlement in the case of the David Bogenberger hazing death in an article entitled, “Largest Ever Settlement Reached in Hazing Case.”[1] After six years of...
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