The Title IX Office within the University's Office for Equal Opportunity and Civil Rights (EOCR) uses Zoom [1] for investigations and hearings/meetings. Every participant will need a computer, laptop, tablet, or smart phone with a camera and an internet connection. If you do not have access to this technology, please contact the Title IX Office as soon as possible after receiving a Notice of Hearing/Meeting at titleixcoordinator@virginia.edu, and preferably withing 48 hours, so that we can work with you to provide access to the necessary technology.

The Executive Assistant for the Title IX Coordinator will send a password-protected Zoom meeting invite in advance of the Review Panel Hearing/Meeting to each party, the party's advisor (if they have one), the Review Panel members, the Review Panel Chair (the Chair), and the court reporter. The Executive Assistant will provide support with technology throughout the Review Panel Hearing/Meeting.

The individuals in attendance at the virtual hearing/meeting will be: (1) three Review Panel member, (2) the non-voting Chair, (3) the Executive Assistant for the Title IX Coordinator, (4) the parties and their respective advisor, if they have one, and (5) a court reporter. Witnesses may also be present during their respective questioning. 

The parties may only have one advisor present with them during the Review Panel Hearing/Meeting; however, the Chair will provide breaks to the parties as necessary and as requested to access support and other resources. 

No. Participation is voluntary and any party or witness may elect not to participate in the Review Panel Hearing/Meeting. However, the University will convene the Review Panel Hearing/Meeting even if a party or parties elect not to participate. With respect to parties, no adverse inference will be drawn by the Review Panel with respect to a party's election not to participate.

No. The Title IX Office will have a certified court reporter present during the Review Panel Hearing/Meeting who will record the Hearing/Meeting. A party may request a copy of the transcript at the conclusion of the Review Panel Hearing/Meeting. The transcript, if requested will be provided at no cost of fee.

Yes. Each party will be provided a private Breakout Room in Zoom that can be used to confer privately with their advisor. The Title IX Executive Assistant is the only person who can access the Breakout Room during the proceedings and will make an announcement before doing so. In addition, the Chair will provide the parties breaks to confer with their advisor upon request. 

All parties and their advisors will communicate any questions by emailing both the Chair at their email address and titleixcoordinator@virginia.edu. In addition, the parties and their advisors may communicate with the Chair verbally if they need a pause or break.

All video conference hearing/meetings are password-protected. The password will only be provided to participants in the Hearing/Meeting. The Executive Assistant will monitor the participants and chat function to ensure that no unauthorized individuals access the hearing/meeting.

Yes. You can submit questions to the Chair to ask the other party or any witnesses. Questions may be submitted by emailing both the Chair at their email address and titleixcoordinator@virginia.edu. Parties may not directly question each other or witnesses.

The timing is largely dependent on the complexity of the matter, th number of questions the Review Panel or parties have, the number of witnesses (if any), and the amount of time necessary for deliberations. All parties should plan for a full day of availability; however, there will be opportunities for breaks. At any time, a party may elect to no longer participate. At the conclusion of the Hearing/Meeting the parties will be informed verbally of the finding and sanction, if any.

If you need reasonable accommodations to meaningfully participate in a virtual Review Panel Hearing/Meeting, please notify the Title IX Coordinator as soon as possible, and preferably within seven calendar days in advance of the Review Hearing/Meeting date to request such accommodations. The Title IX Coordinator will work with the Student Disability Access Center (SDAC) and/or the University's ADA Coordinator, as applicable, to arrange reasonable accommodations.

If you need translation or interpreter services to meaningfully participate in a virtual Review Panel Hearing/Meeting, please notify the Title IX Coordinator as soon as possible. The Title IX Office will work with you to arrange necessary and appropriate services.

The Title IX Office has modified its Procedures to permit virtual hearings/meetings, at the discretion of the Title IX Coordinator. At this time, the University is limited in its in-person activities. Like many federal, state, and local courts, the University has moved its hearings/meetings to a virtual environment to ensure we continue to comply with the necessary safety and physical distance standards while also resolving pending matters. The parties will see and hear the Review Panel members, Chair, and other parties in a comparable format to the in-person hearings/meetings with the same level of due process and opportunities to participate as if it was in-person.

On May 6, 2020, the Department of Education published new Title IX regulations that are in effect as of August 14, 2020. While these regulations govern conduct defined in the regulations (See http://titleix.virginia.edu for more information), the regulations do not restrict the University's ability to investigate and resolve conduct that occurs outside of the Title IX definitions. AS such, while conduct at issue in a pending matter may fall outside the definition of sexual harassment in the new Title IX regulations, the University nonetheless would retain the authority to investigate and resolve such matters even after August 13. Thus, the University will continue to equitable process reports of this nature that fall outside the new Title IX definition of sexual harassment both before and after August 14, 2020, ensuring appropriate due process.