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University of Colorado law professor, Paul Campos, has recently filed a lawsuit against the university and its law school dean, Lolita Buckner Inniss. The lawsuit alleges pay discrimination and retaliation against Campos. In his complaint, Campos asserts that he is paid less than his white colleagues and that he has been subjected to retaliation for raising concerns about his compensation and taking parental leave.
Campos, who is the only Latino faculty member at the law school, filed the lawsuit in a Colorado federal court on Friday. The university spokesperson and Inniss have not yet commented on the lawsuit, and Campos has not responded to requests for comment at this time.
Having been a professor at the University of Colorado’s law school since 1990, Campos gained recognition in 2011 for his critique of the economic model of legal education. He ran a blog called “Inside the Law School Scam,” where he highlighted what he believed were misleading representations of job prospects made by many law schools, resulting in high levels of student loan debt for graduates.
According to the lawsuit, a 2021 pay study conducted by the university revealed that Campos earned nearly $14,000 less per year than his white counterparts among the law faculty. Furthermore, the suit claims that Campos, as the most senior law faculty member without an endowed professorship, has been overlooked for such positions.
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In May 2022, Campos discovered that he received an unusually low annual faculty rating for his work in the previous year. He alleges that this rating was influenced by racial bias and retaliation for taking paternity leave in 2021. Campos states that there is no evidence to support the allegations made against him and that a review of video recordings from his classes confirms that he did not use offensive or biased language.
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Following his complaint to the university, Campos claims that Inniss retaliated against him by removing him from the law school’s faculty evaluations committee and prohibiting him from teaching property law in the spring semester of 2023. The alleged reason given was that Campos had used racially offensive and gender biased comments in class the previous year.
Campos argues that the university has failed to provide any evidence substantiating the claims against him and that the video recordings from his classes support his position. He believes that these actions taken against him are unjust and based on false accusations.
The lawsuit filed by Campos sheds light on the ongoing issues of pay disparity and retaliation within the academic realm. It raises important questions regarding equality and fairness in the workplace, particularly in higher education institutions. The outcome of this case will be closely watched as it may have significant implications for addressing discrimination and ensuring equitable treatment in academia.
As of now, the University of Colorado, its law school dean, and Campos await further legal proceedings to determine the validity of the allegations and the appropriate course of action.
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