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Title IX Not Entitled to Emotional Distress Damages

June 7, 2023

For the first time in Massachusetts, a federal judge has ruled that emotional distress damages are unavailable to a student bringing a Title IX claim against their school.



Here, a student at North Andover High School alleged that another student had sexually assaulted them. It was the student’s claim that the school officials failed to adequately investigate and address the claims of sexual assault.


The School argued in response that emotional distress damages under Title IX were discontinued under the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Cummings v. Premier Rehab Keller, P.L.L.C.


In that case, the Supreme Court ruled that plaintiffs could not recover damages for emotional distress under the Rehabilitation Act of 1972 or the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The court based its finding off of the notion that because such damages are not typically available in contract law, recipients of federal funding lack clear notice that they might face such a remedy under spending clause statutes such as the Rehabilitation Act and the ACA. The School argued that the same applies to Title IX claims.


The U.S. District Court Judge agreed with the School.


“Although the Supreme Court’s holding applies directly only to the Rehabilitation Act and the ACA, the opinion discussed the four Spending Clause Acts, including Title IX,” the judge wrote. “Finding no basis to treat Title IX differently than the Rehabilitation Act and the ACA, the court concludes that Cummings precludes damages for emotional distress under Title IX.”


The U.S. District Court may have diminished the student’s ability to recover emotional distress damages, but the Court has allowed the Title IX claims to move forward and the Student may pursue other avenues of damages to recover.


If your business has any questions on this topic or any other matters, please do not hesitate to contact the attorneys at The Royal Law Firm at 413-586-2288.

Employer’s Counterclaims in Response to Suit Under Wage Act Dismissed Per Employee’s Anti-SLAPP Motion

January 15, 2025
An employer brought counterclaims of malicious prosecution and abuse-of-process in response to a Wage Act suit brought by an employee. The Appeals Court cited that the employer’s counterclaims should have been dismissed under the anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) law. Anti-SLAPP laws are meant to provide parties with a way to quickly dismiss meritless lawsuits filed against them, usually in response to a lawsuit. The plaintiff in this case, an hourly laborer, claimed that his employer violated the Wage Act by failing to pay him for four of the six weeks he worked for them. The employer refuted these allegations, stating that the employee had only worked for two weeks, that he had been paid in full and then brought counterclaims of malicious prosecution and abuse of process. The District Court judge denied the plaintiff’s motion to dismiss the counterclaims under the anti-SLAPP law. When brought to the Appeals Court, the decision was reversed; the Appeals Court stated that the defendants did not meet the burden of showing that plaintiff’s claims lacked an objectively reasonable factual basis. This ruling suggests that it might behoove an employer to pause and wait to see if a plaintiff’s Wage Act claim fails before filing a counterclaim of abuse of process or malicious prosecution in response.  If your business has any questions on this topic or any other matters, please do not hesitate to contact the attorneys at The Royal Law Firm at 413-586-2288.

Compensation Plans and Contingent Compensation Pitfalls

January 8, 2025
Attorney Trevor Brice hosted a seminar on Wednesday, January 8, 2025, discussing the possible issues with current compensation plans and contingent compensation pitfalls made possible by recent court rulings. Some of the topics discussed included: Issues with current compensation plans under the FLSA Restrictive Covenants and Compensation Plans Problems with Commission-Based Compensation Plans and Possible Solutions When a Bonus is not actually a bonus and issues under the Massachusetts Wage Act This seminar was perfect for H.R. professionals and anyone in a management position. Please feel free to contact any of the attorneys at The Royal Law Firm if you have any questions on this topic!
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