John M. Simpson – UpdateED

June 29, 2026June 29, 2026 by Anthony J. Guida Jr.

Federal Court Stays Department of Education’s Narrowed Definition of “Professional Degree” for Graduate Student Loan Limits

By Anthony J. Guida Jr., Katherine D. Brodie, Jen DeMay, Kristina Gill and John M. Simpson

On June 24, 2026—just one week before the July 1, 2026, effective date of the new student loan limits—the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a significant ruling in American Association of Nurse Practitioners v. McMahon and the consolidated case PA Education Association v. Department of Education, staying in part implementation of the U.S. Department of Education’s new regulatory definition of “professional degree.” The stay prevents the Department from enforcing its narrowed definition, which would have limited the categories of graduate students eligible for higher federal student loan limits under the Working Families Tax Cuts Act (also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”), pending resolution of the litigation.

Read the full Alert on the Duane Morris LLP website.

June 16, 2020 by John M. Simpson

Ninth Circuit Rules that California Private Postsecondary Education Act Burdens Free Speech

by John M. Simpson.

A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently held that a postsecondary education plaintiff stated a claim that his rights under the First Amendment had been violated by the California Private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 (PPEA), Cal. Educ. Code § 94800 et seq. Pacific Coast Horseshoeing School, Inc. v. Kirchmeyer, ___ F.3d ___, No. 18-15840 (9th Cir. June 10, 2020). The case was remanded for further proceedings in the district court. Continue reading “Ninth Circuit Rules that California Private Postsecondary Education Act Burdens Free Speech”

October 7, 2019 by John M. Simpson

First Circuit Rejects Professor’s First Amendment Challenge to Maine Law Governing University Collective Bargaining

by John M. Simpson.

On October 4, 2019 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the judgment of a district court dismissing an action brought by an economics professor at the University of Maine at Machias seeking to invalidate, on First Amendment grounds, a Maine statute that governs the collective bargaining process between the University of Maine system and its faculty. Reisman v. Associated Faculties of the Univ. of Maine, No. 18-2201 (1st Cir. Oct. 4, 2019). Continue reading “First Circuit Rejects Professor’s First Amendment Challenge to Maine Law Governing University Collective Bargaining”

September 23, 2019September 23, 2019 by John M. Simpson

D.C. Circuit Revives False Claims Act Retaliation Case Against University

By John M. Simpson.

On September 20, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit reversed a district court judgment that had dismissed a retaliation case brought by a university veterinarian who was allegedly terminated for making internal and external complaints about the conditions in which laboratory animals were being maintained. Singletary v. Howard University, No. 18-7158 (D.C. Cir. Sept. 20, 2019). The appellate panel deciding the case split on the question of whether plaintiff was engaged in protected activity or was simply doing her job. Continue reading “D.C. Circuit Revives False Claims Act Retaliation Case Against University”