Supreme Court will not review Brown U. title IX case

The Court's move validates the previous decision that Brown discriminated against women in funding its athletic program. The U.S. Supreme Court announced today that it will not review the decision in Cohen vs. Brown University, which found the school in violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for discriminating against women in its intercollegiate athletic program. The latest development in the controversial case comes after Brown and a wide range of universities, athletic associations and politicians had asked the Supreme Court to review the case and overturn the finding against Brown. The lawsuit charges Brown with violating Title IX -- the federal law prohibiting sex discrimination at educational institutions which receive federal funding -- by terminating funding for its women's gymnastics and volleyball teams. "This is a huge victory for women throughout the nation and everyone who believes in equal rights," said Lynette Labenger, lead counsel for Trial Lawyers for Public Justice -- the public interest law firm which sponsored the case. "It has been 25 years since Title IX was passed and now it's time for the celebration to begin," TLPJ Executive Director Arthur Bryant said. "The message from the courts is clear. There will be no more excuses. Discrimination against women in athletics has got to stop." The lawsuit was filed in April 1992 and TLPJ won a preliminary injunction requiring Brown to reinstate its women's gymnastics and volleyball teams. Following a three-month trial, the U.S. District Court Judge Raymond Pettine found Brown in violation of Title IX and ordered the university to submit a proposal outlining how it planned to meet the requirements of the amendment. That July, Judge Pettine reviewed the university's proposal and found it unacceptable. He ordered Brown to upgrade its women's gymnastics, fencing, water polo and skiing teams to fully funded varsity status. In November 1996, the First Circuit Court upheld Pettine's decision finding Brown in violation of Title IX but agreed to let the university develop its own plan for compliance. Brown then asked the Supreme Court to review the case. But because proceedings have also been continuing in the lower courts, the new proposal was also due yesterday. The university submitted a plan to adjust the ratio of women to men among its varsity athletes in order to mirror as closely as possible the overall gender ratio of the undergraduate student body. "Brown hopes to meet the District Court's requirements for gender proportionality without adding any University-funded teams or eliminating any men's teams," Brown spokesperson Mark Nickel said. He added that Brown has already established an equestrian team --which is nominally coed but consists mostly of women -- and plans to add a lightweight women's crew team to the existing crew program. The university will also upgrade the women's water polo club to varsity status.