Belmont Law Commits to Review as Women Stand by Stories of Unfair Treatment

The Belmont Vision continues to report on the stories of women who say law school administrators treated them unfairly during their pregnancies, offering little if any support and no accommodations with regard to the school's attendance policy. 

All four women who spoke on the record to the student news outlet spoke to the Vision again earlier this week, standing by their stories after the law school cast some doubt on them. In a statement to the Scene, the law school called the allegations — which describe women being denied excused absences due to hospitalizations and child birth — "extremely serious and concerning" but also said "these situations are far more complex than what was included in the initial reporting."

One of the women says she was forced to return to class just days after having an emergency cesarean section, before she was able to drive or carry her own books.

On Wednesday, the Vision published the school's full rebuttal to their initial reporting, in which Belmont commits to reviewing the allegations and its policies.

As to many of the specific allegations in this story regarding the attendance policy and medical exceptions, the information reported does not align with the student-centered values with which our law school strives to operate. That has us concerned. Moreover, we reject any suggestion that our College operated outside the law in any of these situations.

In order to understand the conflicting reports, we are committed to thoroughly reviewing these situations to determine the next appropriate steps and to seek ways to better clarify our commitment to student welfare and success. Additionally, in order to understand these conflicting reports, we will fully support an independent review into this matter by the University’s Title IX office. In short, we will get to the bottom of this because we want every student – past or present – to feel supported by the College of Law.

The women tell the Vision they welcome an independent review by the school's Title IX office.