Zonshayn v. Friends of the Sackler School of Medicine

Background

David Zonshayn sued Sackler School of Medicine (New York) ("SSM (NY)") and Tel Aviv University ("TAU"). He sought damages and court orders under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, a federal law barring sex discrimination in federally funded education programs. He also asserted New York claims for breach of contract, promissory estoppel, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and fraudulent inducement.

The lawsuit arose from TAU’s investigation and disciplinary proceedings concerning allegations that Zonshayn engaged in sexually inappropriate and unprofessional conduct. The alleged conduct, investigation, and disciplinary proceedings took place in Israel. Zonshayn denied the allegations and alleged that the defendants mishandled the proceedings and harmed his education, licensing prospects, and career.

Personal Jurisdiction over TAU

TAU argued that the court lacked personal jurisdiction—meaning authority over TAU in this case. The court rejected that argument. It found that TAU conducted business in New York through the American Medical Program, which was registered and accredited by the New York State Education Department, accepted American and Canadian students, and used SSM (NY), a New York educational corporation, for administrative activities.

The court also found a sufficient connection between TAU’s New York activities and Zonshayn’s claims. It concluded that TAU had purposefully established contacts with New York and that exercising jurisdiction would be fair. Accordingly, TAU’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction was DENIED.

Title IX Claims

The court granted the defendants’ Rule 12(b)(6) motion—a motion arguing that the complaint does not allege enough facts to state a legally valid claim—as to Zonshayn’s three Title IX claims. The court held that Title IX does not apply outside the United States because Congress did not clearly state that it applies to foreign conduct.

The court determined that the conduct challenged under Title IX occurred in Israel: the alleged misconduct occurred there, and TAU’s Israeli faculty and administrators conducted the disciplinary proceedings there. The complaint did not allege that SSM (NY)’s New York employees participated in the disciplinary process. The court therefore concluded that Zonshayn was seeking an impermissible application of Title IX to conduct outside the United States. The motion to dismiss Claims One through Three for failure to state a claim was GRANTED.

New York-Law Claims

The court also granted the motion to dismiss Claims Four through Seven.

For the breach-of-contract claim, the court found that Zonshayn was challenging TAU’s disciplinary process and decisions. Under New York law, such challenges are generally reviewed under Article 78, a state-court procedure using a deferential standard. The complaint did not allege facts showing that the disciplinary decisions exceeded the university’s authority, were arbitrary or an abuse of discretion, or lacked substantial evidence.

The court dismissed the promissory-estoppel claim because it was duplicative of the contract claim and did not satisfy the applicable requirements. It dismissed the intentional-infliction-of-emotional-distress claim because the allegations were conclusory and did not describe conduct sufficiently extreme and outrageous to support that claim. Finally, it dismissed the fraudulent-inducement claim because Zonshayn did not plead the alleged fraud with the particularity required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 9(b), including the statements made, who made them, when and where they were made, and why they were fraudulent.

Disposition

Judge Analisa Torres granted Defendants’ motion to dismiss Plaintiff’s claims for failure to state a claim, ECF No. 66. The court denied TAU’s personal-jurisdiction motion, ECF No. 69, and did not reach TAU’s alternative argument based on the doctrine of forum non conveniens, which asks whether another forum is substantially more appropriate for the dispute.