A federal judge ruled on Thursday that George Mason University can continue its investigation into former law professor Joshua Wright, a former U.S. Federal Trade Commission member who resigned in 2023 following multiple accusations of sexual misconduct. U.S. District Court Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles, presiding in the Eastern District of Virginia, did not fully dismiss Wright’s lawsuit aimed at halting the university’s investigation, but allowed the case to proceed on more limited grounds.
Wright’s attorney, Benjamin North of the Binnall Law Group, did not provide a comment on the ruling. A George Mason University spokesperson also declined to comment, and Wright himself did not respond to inquiries sent to his law firm.
Wright filed his lawsuit in November 2023, alleging that George Mason University violated Title IX and its own policies by investigating claims that he used his position at the Antonin Scalia Law School to pursue a sexual relationship with a student. He also claimed that the university wrongfully dismissed his own sexual harassment complaint against the same student, Elyse Dorsey.
Wright’s court filings revealed that he began an 11-year on-again, off-again relationship with Dorsey in 2010 while she was a law student. Dorsey, now a partner at Kirkland & Ellis, filed a Title IX complaint against Wright in 2021, accusing him of sexually assaulting her early in their relationship and later using his authority to block job opportunities for her. At least two other women have also accused Wright of misconduct, as reported by the press.
In response to Dorsey’s complaint, Wright filed his own Title IX complaint against her in 2022, alleging that she sexually harassed and retaliated against him after their consensual relationship ended. However, George Mason University dismissed his complaint, determining that Dorsey was not a university employee at the time, a decision Wright claims constituted sex-based differential treatment.
Judge Giles dismissed eight of Wright’s nine claims, including two without prejudice, but allowed Wright to pursue a First Amendment claim against the university’s Title IX coordinator, Thomas Bluestein. Wright alleges that Bluestein violated his First Amendment rights by allowing Dorsey to amend her Title IX complaint to include a retaliation claim after Wright filed a defamation lawsuit against her and another accuser. Bluestein did not respond to requests for comment.
Dorsey welcomed Giles’ decision, stating that it “preserves an important avenue for universities to protect survivors from retaliation.” She also emphasized that defamation lawsuits are often used as tools to silence survivors.
