A Title IX case is essentially a disciplinary process that is brought against students, staff, and faculty. The disciplinary process can exist at various levels, such as college, university, and K-12 schools. These cases usually involve some gender discrimination, sexual assault, stalking, and dating violence.
Throughout the course of a Title IX case, the accused could potentially face severe consequences, including suspension, expulsion, or any other form of disciplinary action that the school deems appropriate.
So, if you actually have a Title IX case, you should avoid several mistakes.
Do Not Talk About Your Case on Social Media
When it comes to a Title IX case, you should avoid the mistake of talking about your case on any sort of social media, including Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram – you name it. You might be told by someone that you are charged with Title IX, and it can cause you to freak out.
It doesn’t matter whether you are a student or a faculty – don’t make the mistake of venting on social media. Social media carries a lot of noise where people talk about everything they can think of. But avoid the mistake of talking about your case on social media.
Anything that you say on social media can be used against you in the future.
When to Call An Attorney?
You should know that the best time to hire a Title IX lawyer is as soon as the case starts. Ideally, you should hire a lawyer as soon as you have a concern or as soon as you are notified by your institute that you are under investigation – you should have an attorney involved.
The thing is that typically, in such cases, too much is at stake as schools are typically in a rush to judge the case and do not have an accused person’s rights and interests in mind. On that note, an experienced attorney should be involved in the case from the start.
Do Not Confront Anybody
If you are dealing with a Title IX case, you should know better than to confront an accuser. Believe us when we tell you that confronting an accuser or a witness is a massive mistake, which can cause you loads of problems.
Now, you might not have done anything, which is why you will be naturally inclined to confront the accusers and argue with them about the matter. On that note, avoid doing the following things at all costs:
- Calling
- Texting
- Sending DMs
- Sending Emails
Don’t yell at the person who accused you, but get an attorney right away. As mentioned before – whatever you say can be used against you later. Also, by confronting people, you are more likely to commit another school violation, which is retaliation. You cannot retaliate against anybody.
Always Save Evidence
It doesn’t matter what sort of accusation you face; you must make it a rule to always save photos, videos, texts, emails, and anything else that can serve as evidence of your innocence. You must save any evidence that can go against the allegation of the accuser. Never delete texts or emails that can be incredibly powerful and helpful to your case.
On that note, never delete photos, texts, emails, and videos from your phone that have anything to do with the case, the accuser, or witnesses.
Always Hire An Advisor
As we mentioned before, you should hire a Title IX attorney as soon as you know that you are dealing with such charges. Now, you might know that you are innocent, but the jury and the judge don’t know this until you prove things otherwise.
Do not make the mistake of not using an attorney as your advisor. In a Title IX case, you are legally entitled to have someone by your side. This person who will be by your side will be your advisor. Of course, the person doesn’t necessarily have to be a lawyer – but it would help you tremendously if you had one.
We recommend hiring a particular lawyer who has some solid trial skills and experience because these things will be needed in a Title IX case. Your advisor will cross-examine the witnesses and the accuser at any hearing on the matter.
Hire a Lawyer as Your Advisor
Your best option is to get a lawyer with trial experience as your advisor because cross-examination is a learned skill. To effectively handle a Title IX case, you need an experienced lawyer by your side, as the lawyer will have the experience, knowledge, and skill to cross-examine someone effectively.
The most important reason why you should have an attorney is because the attorney will have a strategy overall throughout. An attorney, as opposed to a teacher or parent, is going to think of anything strategically. They will think about all aspects in a strategic manner, including what you think, say, and write.
The attorney will advise you on what to do and what not to do. They can also help you jot down the right statement in a way that makes sure you are preserving your rights and doing the right thing for yourself.
Do Not Apologize to Your Accuser
One of the worst mistakes you can make to your accuser is to apologize to them. Yes – you read this right. There might be a situation where you dated someone, and you thought that everything was consensual, but they contact you and tell you that they are upset with you.
If this happens, you might feel the need to apologize to them as you might want to console them. You might also feel guilt, and you want to make the guilt fade away. So, you apologize to make the bad feelings go away. Just to make all the accusations stop, you might want to show empathy and say sorry.
But this apology can cause you to lose the case. Your apology that you gave out of empathy is not evidence against you in the Title IX case. So, whatever you do, never make the mistake of apologizing – particularly in writing, as this can be the number one killer in your case.
