2015 Fraternal Law Conference

Micah Kamrass, Manley Burke, mkamrass@manleyburke.com The 2015 Fraternal Law Conference, scheduled for Thursday, November 12th and Friday, November 13th, is already shaping up to be among the best.  Speakers already committed include:  Justice Gary R. Wade of the Tennessee Supreme...
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Sigma Phi Epsilon Becomes First Men's Fraternity to Adopt Clear Transgender Policy

Tim Burke, Manley Burke, tburke@manleyburke.com Sigma Phi Epsilon appears to be the first traditional men’s fraternity to adopt a clear transgender policy.  The policy adopted this summer states: “Sigma Phi Epsilon is a national Fraternity built on the brotherhood and...
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Trinity College Abandons Co-Ed Mandate

Tim Burke, Manley Burke, tburke@manleyburke.com On September 4, 2015, Joanne Berger-Sweeney, the President of Trinity College, announced that the college was abandoning its requirement that all fraternities and sororities on campus must be co-ed by the Fall Semester of the...
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University Panel Finds Fraternity Not Responsible for a Video of a Member Chanting "Rape"

Micah Kamrass, Manley Burke, mkamrass@manleyburke.com On August 14, 2015, the University of Central Florida suspended the Sigma Nu Fraternity chapter on its campus. The suspension resulted from a complaint with the Student Conduct Office. The complaint references a video where...
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Sorority Ends Recognition of Chapter House Following a Dispute With the House Corporation

Micah Kamrass, Manley Burke, mkamrass@manleyburke.com Alpha Omicron Pi recently announced that it would no longer recognize the chapter house at the University of California at Berkeley.  The sorority said it would remove letters from the house, discontinue insurance for the...
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... there are still plenty of misuses and abuses of tax exempt law to kick around

Sean Callan, Manley Burke, sean.callan@manleyburke.com So begins a recent story in Forbes.1  The story is an unflattering look at how Princeton eating clubs spend charitable (i.e., tax deductible) dollars.  While eating clubs are not Greek organizations, the eating clubs fall...
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Oregon Court Upholds Summary Judgment for National, but Overturns for Chapter

Tim Burke, Manley Burke, tburke@manleyburke.com On September 2, 2015, the Court of Appeals for the State of Oregon decided Scheffel v. Oregon Beta Chapter of Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity, upholding a Summary Judgment granted to the national fraternity, but reversing...
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Lack of Due Process a Problem in Addressing Sexual Misconduct

Tim Burke, Manley Burke, tburke@manley.com The Safe Campus and Fair Campus bills, while supported by both the National Panhellenic Conference and the North American Intrafraternity Conference, have drawn mixed reviews.  The National Association of Scholars and the National District Attorneys...
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Two New Bills Address Sexual Assault Issues

Tim Burke, Manley Burke, tburke@manleyburke.com In July, two bills – the Safe Campus Act and the Fair Campus Act – were introduced in the United States House of Representatives.  Both bills have the support of the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC)...
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