An LSU Title IX lawyer can help identify your resolution track and prepare for questioning.
Louisiana State University addresses power-based violence, including sex and gender-based harassment and sexual misconduct, under Permanent Memorandum 73, administered by the Title IX Coordinator across university locations. The Code of Student Conduct routes sex and gender-based cases to the PM-73 process through the Office of Civil Rights. Your notice letter should state which resolution track applies, since informal, administrative, and formal paths carry different decision makers and hearing rights. Background is at what is Title IX.
Intake: incident report versus formal complaint in Baton Rouge
An incident report and a formal complaint are not the same step at LSU. An incident report from anyone notifies the office and brings support, but does not by itself trigger an investigation. A formal complaint from the harmed party, or signed by the Title IX Coordinator, requests an official resolution and starts the process after an intake meeting reviewing options.
The Coordinator analyzes the complaint, assigns an investigator, and sends a detailed written notice of investigation and allegations covering the allegations, parties, policies, dates, advisor rights, the presumption of non-responsibility, evidence access, retaliation rules, and the bar on knowingly false statements.
PM-73 carries a January 2022 revision date and remains the policy posted on the current Title IX policies hub, which describes the same formal process. Confirm with the office that you are working from the current version, including the procedures identified in your notice. First steps are at after you have been accused.
Investigation: evidence access and the draft report
Investigators gather statements and evidence from the complainant, the respondent, and witnesses, with the burden of proof and evidence gathering on the university. Both sides have equal opportunity to present facts, expert witnesses, and inculpatory and exculpatory evidence, and neither side is restricted from discussing the allegations or gathering evidence. All investigation interviews are recorded by the investigator, and treatment records require voluntary written consent before use.
First, the investigator sends a comprehensive draft report with all relevant evidence, including evidence the university will not rely on, and both sides have ten business days to review and respond in writing.
Second, the investigator considers those responses and issues a final report that fairly summarizes the evidence without recommending a violation finding, sent electronically with all evidence to both sides, advisors, and the decision maker or panel chair.
All reasonably available evidence you plan to present at a hearing must reach the investigator before the final report is complete. The policy targets completion within forty five days of receipt of the formal complaint, while the live hub describes forty five to ninety business days depending on caseload and timing. How investigators build records is at Title IX investigation.
Hearing and advisor: three person panel with advisor questioning
Formal Resolution covers possible Title IX violations or allegations that, if true, could reasonably lead to suspension, expulsion, or termination. It uses a live hearing before three trained panelists, typically from the resolution pool or administrative law judges.
Administrative Resolution uses one decision maker and written questions instead of a live hearing. Cases requiring Formal Resolution may use it only if the respondent accepts responsibility for all allegations. Written questions are due within five business days after the decision maker’s outreach. Informal Resolution is voluntary, imposes no institutional sanctions, and cannot be appealed.
At least ten business days must pass after the final report goes out before the hearing takes place. This is preparation time, not a response deadline. A pre-hearing conference at least two business days before the hearing addresses panel objections, evidence, witnesses, and advisor readiness, and the chair may grant one good cause delay of up to ten business days.
At the hearing, the investigator presents the report and answers questions, witnesses testify in turn, and each side advisor conducts cross-examination directly, orally, and in real time, with relevance rulings by the chair. Parties themselves never question each other. If you have no advisor, LSU provides one at no cost. Hearings may be in person, virtual, or hybrid, and the proceeding is recorded for party review.
PM-73 and LSU’s 2025 annual report restrict reliance on evidence not subjected to cross-examination. The corresponding federal exclusion rule was vacated in 2021; ask LSU which evidence rule will apply before relying on exclusion. Absence or refusal to answer alone cannot support an inference about responsibility. Hearing format is at how do Title IX hearings work. Defense planning notes are at title-ix-defense-strategies.
Sanctions and emergency measures
The panel deliberates in closed session, decides by simple majority under the preponderance standard, and prepares a written determination letter typically within five business days, shared with the parties and advisors typically within three business days of the Title IX Coordinator receiving the determination from the Hearing Panel.
Sanctioning weighs the guidelines, prior history, power differential, and violation character. Student sanctions range from warning, probation, and deferred suspension through suspension and expulsion, plus assessments, restrictions, and transcript notation, with formal sanctions generally held until appeals conclude except for narrow safety exceptions. Related consequences are at consequences of a Title IX violation.
Separately, a respondent may be suspended from the education program on an emergency basis after an individualized safety and risk analysis finding an immediate threat to physical health or safety. PM-73 provides a three-business-day period to notify the Title IX Coordinator in writing of a challenge. Its wording does not clearly identify that period’s starting event, so confirm the deadline in the removal notice promptly.
The Coordinator provides a meeting opportunity within three business days of receipt of notice and a written decision within three business days after the meeting. The interim action remains in effect during review.
Appeals: one route for both resolution tracks
Either side may appeal an Administrative or Formal determination on five grounds: conflict of interest or bias affecting the outcome, new evidence not reasonably available at the responsibility or dismissal determination that could affect the outcome, procedural irregularity affecting the outcome, a clearly erroneous outcome on the facts and evidence, and sanctions inappropriate to the violation and disciplinary history. A written notice of appeal is due to the Title IX Coordinator within five business days of email notification of the decision, with the other side receiving five business days to respond.
An impartial Appeals Reviewer checks timeliness and required elements, then reviews the record, report, determination, and hearing recording, typically deciding within five business days of receiving the file. Outcomes range from upholding to overturning with remand for a new hearing, a sanctions only hearing, or a new or adjusted investigation, to modifying responsibility or sanctions. Review is deferential, not a rehearing; the decision is final. Cases dismissed as Title IX matters may still proceed under PM-73 or the Code rather than ending review. Appeal mechanics are at title-IX appeals.
Frequently asked questions
Does every LSU report lead to a hearing?
No. Incident reports bring support without automatically triggering investigation. Only a formal complaint starts a resolution track, and only Formal Resolution cases reach a live panel hearing.
Which track applies to my case?
Your notice should identify the track. Administrative Resolution generally handles lower-level non-Title IX matters. A case requiring Formal Resolution can use Administrative Resolution if the respondent accepts responsibility for all allegations.
How do I see the evidence?
You receive the draft report with all evidence, including material the university will not rely on, for a ten business day written response, then the final report with all evidence at least ten business days before the hearing.
Can an LSU Title IX lawyer advise me?
Your advisor may be any person who is not a party or witness, including an attorney. Only advisors conduct cross-examination, and LSU provides one at no cost if you have none at the hearing.
Do sanctions wait for appeal?
Generally yes for formal hearing sanctions, which are held until appeals conclude except for narrow safety exceptions. Administrative sanctions are likewise generally held during appeal.
How do I appeal?
File a written notice with the Title IX Coordinator within five business days of email notification of the decision, stating one or more of the five grounds with any new evidence documented. The other side has five business days to respond.
More guides for Louisiana schools: Louisiana Title IX lawyer.
Disclaimer
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Confirm current procedures and deadlines with LSU. This site is not affiliated with LSU. No attorney client relationship is created by reading this page.
Sources
- Permanent Memorandum 73, Prohibiting Power-based Violence
- Title IX Resolution Options hub, Office of Civil Rights and Title IX
- Title IX Policies hub, Office of Civil Rights and Title IX
- Code of Student Conduct
- LSU 2025 Annual Security Report
- Federal Register discussion of the 2021 statement-exclusion vacatur
To discuss your options, contact us.
