Doe says that she denied the accusations, provided written proof, and also submitted documentation of her disabilities, the symptoms of which could include “formal tone, meticulous structure, stylistic consistency, and heightened distress during oral confrontation, [which] can be misinterpreted as artificial or dishonest behavior and are not proof of AI misuse.”
A federal lawsuit claims that the University of Michigan discriminated against a student with disabilities after a professor accused her of writing papers using an artificial intelligence tool.
According to CBS News, the lawsuit was filed earlier this week in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Attorneys for the student, identified by the pseudonym “Jane Doe,” describe their client as an undergraduate with documented disabilities, including generalized anxiety disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
“These conditions substantially limit one or more major life activities including concentration, thinking, communicating, and interacting with others in high-stress settings,” the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit further claims that the university had notice “no later than” February 7, 2025, of the student’s disabilities and need for accommodations through its Services for Students with Disabilities process.
Attorneys say that, during fall semester 2025, Professor Theo Nash accused Doe of using AI to write papers no fewer than three times.
“The accusations were based heavily on subjective judgments about Plaintiff’s writing style and on self-confirming ‘AI comparison’ outputs generated using Plaintiff’s own outlines and content,” the lawsuit states.
Doe says that she denied the accusations, provided written proof, and also submitted documentation of her disabilities, the symptoms of which could include “formal tone, meticulous structure, stylistic consistency, and heightened distress during oral confrontation, [which] can be misinterpreted as artificial or dishonest behavior and are not proof of AI misuse.”
“Plaintiff’s disabilities affect her ability to tolerate high-stress academic and disciplinary proceedings, particularly those requiring live verbal defense, rapid processing, and adversarial questioning,” the complaint says.
The lawsuit states that the University of Michigan and its Office of Student Academic Affairs decided to take disciplinary measures without providing the student with disability support, despite having been notified. Doe was subjected to measures including “disciplinary probation”; she was also asked to write a reflective essay and was issued “no grade” marks on her transcript.
Doe and her attorneys charge the university, its regent, and several faculty members with violating provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to “reasonable accommodate” the student’s disability-related limitations “in the academic integrity process and related academic decisions.”
The lawsuit also claims violations of the Rehabilitation Act for discrimination “solely by reason of disability” by “treating disability-related writing traits as evidence of misconduct.”
“Defendants treated disability-related traits and limitations as evidence of guilt and failed to apply disability- informed modifications in the academic integrity process,” it says.
Sources
Student sues University of Michigan over AI cheating accusations
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