Hi Lucy,

Happy fall!

This month, we are excited to share several exciting updates, including a major victory for our clients fighting back against Ohio State University's sexual abuse cover-up and a recap of our very own Karla Gilbride's hearing before the Senate HELP Committee in her nomination to serve as General Counsel for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

We also welcomed two new Skadden Fellows to our Debtors' Prison Project and Students' Civil Rights Project teams, celebrated another Clean Water Act win, and spoke with Public Justice member James Pizzirusso about his team's work on the recent $500 million T-Mobile data breach settlement — one of the largest in history.

Justice for OSU Victims in the Sixth Circuit!

This month, in a 2-1 decision, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of our lawsuits against Ohio State University and its decades-long role in facilitating and concealing the sexual abuse of hundreds of students and others by school-employed physician Dr. Richard Strauss. This was a reversal of the district court’s decision to dismiss the cases, which was based on OSU’s assertion that the victims’ claims were untimely because the statute of limitations had expired.

In July, we argued before a panel of three judges that most survivors weren’t aware that Strauss had abused them until 2018, when the university publicly announced it was investigating allegations of Strauss’ abuse. We also argued that none of the survivors were aware of the role the university played — and its decades of concealment — in enabling Strauss’ abuse.

In a sweeping victory, the Sixth Circuit agreed, stating in its opinion that “plaintiffs adequately allege that they did not know and could not reasonably have known that Ohio State injured them until 2018,” rejecting OSU’s claims that the survivors should have taken action sooner.

"After today's ruling Ohio State can’t hide behind the statute of limitations and attempt to ‘run out the clock’ on its accountability for enabling and concealing two decades of Dr. Strauss’s serial sexual predation," said Students’ Civil Rights Project Director Adele Kimmel. "This decision is one step forward in granting justice for the over 100 survivors who have carried this burden and trauma throughout their lives.”

Public Justice's Karla Gilbride Testifies at

EEOC Nomination Hearing

On September 13, our Access to Justice Co-Director Karla Gilbride testified before the Senate Health, Employment, Labor, Pensions (HELP) Committee for her nomination to serve as General Counsel at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). 

"The laws the EEOC enforces represent some of this country’s greatest ideals: that everyone should have opportunities in the workplace free from barriers caused by bias, harassment, or a failure to accommodate their religion or their disability," said Karla during her powerful opening statement.

Karla's confirmation vote is expected within the next few weeks. Though we would miss Karla greatly if she is confirmed, we're proud to support her and urge Senators to swiftly confirm her nomination.

Karla testifies before the Senate HELP Committee on September 13, 2022.

Two Skadden Fellows Join Public Justice to

Fight Criminalization of Poverty and

Protect Students' Civil Rights

This month, we're thrilled to welcome two Skadden Fellows to our team! The Skadden Fellowship Program provides two-year fellowships to recent law graduates to pursue the practice of public interest law on a full-time basis.

Our new Fellows are in good company — Debtors' Prison Project attorney John He just completed his Fellowship, and our Students’ Rights Civil Project staff attorney Alexandra Brodsky joined Public Justice as a Fellow in 2016. Learn more about our Fellows below!

Working With Our Allies

This month, we were proud to join our allies to collectively weigh in on matters that affect workers, students, and consumers. Click the links below to read each letter and visit our Endorsements page to learn more.

• 9/7 Coalition letter to Senate: Confirm Kalpana Kotagal to EEOC
• 9/12 Coalition letter to Dept. of Education: Title IX Rulemaking Comments
• 9/13 Coalition letter to the CFPB: Limit Forced Arbitration

James Pizzirusso: Fighting for Victims of the T-Mobile Data Breach & Why Class Actions Matter

In August 2021, millions of former, prospective, and current T-Mobile customers became the victims of one of the largest data breaches in history. Over 76 million people were ultimately affected. In July 2022, a $350 million settlement was negotiated for the victims, one of the largest data breach settlements in history. An additional $150 million will be invested by the company to improve its own security infrastructure and practices.

Public Justice member James Pizzirusso (Hausfeld) was a key member of the legal team responsible for this historic consumer win.

We recently spoke with James about what this settlement means for data breach victims, and why class actions are one of the most effective tools for righting corporate wrongs: "Class actions are really the only way to provide real accountability to corporations on behalf of financially injured plaintiffs and consumers [...] We have seen time and time again how class actions cause companies to change their practices for the better, creating monumental and lasting change across industries." Read the full interview here. 

"Class actions are really the only way to provide real accountability to corporations on behalf of financially injured plaintiffs and consumers [...] We have seen time and time again how class actions cause companies to change their practices for the better, creating monumental and lasting change across industries." From Hausfeld's James Pizzirusso. 

Public Justice welcomes this month's new members — your unwavering commitment to our mission of combating injustice helps us reach our goals.

Questions? Contact us here.