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Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to follow up on my July 11 message on FASORP v. Northwestern, in which we condemn its disparagement of outstanding Black, Latinx, Asian, female, and LGBTQI+ faculty and of our excellent Northwestern University Law Review editors and authors. Over the last several weeks, we have been working closely with the University to vigorously defend against this lawsuit. 

Yesterday, our legal counsel filed a motion to dismiss. It argues that FASORP’s meritless complaint is “a vehicle to baselessly malign individual professors due to their race and gender and to advance the political agenda of the organization and those behind it.” The filing advances three grounds for dismissal: “First, FASORP lacks Article III standing because it does not allege that it has student members and because it does not plead facts sufficient to establish a non-speculative, concrete, and imminent injury to its members who serve on the faculty at other law schools. Second, FASORP’s claims against the individual defendants should be dismissed because they are duplicative of its claims against the University, and individuals cannot be sued under Titles VI and IX in any event. Third, FASORP fails to allege facts sufficient to state a Title VI, Title IX, or Section 1981 claim.” 

We have full confidence that this lawsuit will be dismissed. We remain committed to our values and to defending against these baseless, racially-targeted attacks on our exceptional faculty, students, staff, and alumni. We are moving forward with the important work of the Law School, including faculty hiring.

Sincerely,
Hari Osofsky

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