Peter F. Lake
Senior Higher Education Attorney
Business
J.D. Harvard Law School, cum laude
A.B. Harvard College, magna cum laude
Office:
Louisville, KY
(502) 423-2000
Biography
Peter Lake is a nationally recognized expert on a variety of higher education topics, including Title IX. He is professor of law, Charles A. Dana chair and director of the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy at Stetson University College of Law. At Steptoe & Johnson, Professor Lake is a Senior Higher Education Attorney and member of the Steptoe & Johnson Higher Education Team.
Together with his teaching, Professor Lake practices law and writes in the areas of torts, higher education law and policy, insurance, and jurisprudence, and has won several awards for his teaching and scholarship. He is an internationally- recognized expert on higher education law and policy and has been quoted or referred to in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Chicago Sun Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Ed, Time, Newsweek, Cosmopolitan, various reported legal decisions including the supreme courts of Virginia and Florida, and the most recent Restatement of the Law of Torts.
Professor Lake has authored numerous law review articles and other publications, including five books. He is a highly sought after speaker and futurist, particularly in the field of higher education law and policy. He has served as a presenter or keynote speaker at several hundred international, national, regional, and local meetings.
Memberships & Awards
Professional
American Bar AssociationNew York State Bar AssociationAcademic Master, Polk County American Inn of CourtBoard of Editors, Harvard International Law ReviewStudent Education and Admission to Bar Subcommittee of Florida Bar Editor of the Journal of College and University Law
Know-How
Work Experience
2018 Steptoe & Johnson PLLC
2015 Interim Director, Title IX Compliance, Stetson University
1998-present President, Hierophant Enterprises, Inc.
1990-present Professor of Law, Charles A. Dana Chair and Director of the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy, Stetson University College of Law
1986-1990 Cahill Gordon & Reindel
1986 Campaign Advisor, Director of Investigations, Committee to Elect James E. O'Neill, Rhode Island Attorney General Race
1985-1986 Law Clerk, Honorable Neil Lynch, Associate Justice, Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
1984-1985 Law Clerk, Honorable Bruce M. Seyla, Judge, United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island (Now United States Court of Appeals, 1st Circuit)
1984 Summer Law Clerk, Palmer & Dodge
1983 Summer Law Clerk, Cahill Gordon & Reindel
1981-1983 Summer Law Clerk, LeBoeuf, Lamb, Leiby & MacRae
1980-1981 Consumer Protection Unit Investigator, Office of the Attorney General of the State of Rhode Island
1979-1980 Paralegal, Office of the Public Defender of the State of Rhode Island
2015 Interim Director, Title IX Compliance, Stetson University
1998-present President, Hierophant Enterprises, Inc.
1990-present Professor of Law, Charles A. Dana Chair and Director of the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy, Stetson University College of Law
1986-1990 Cahill Gordon & Reindel
1986 Campaign Advisor, Director of Investigations, Committee to Elect James E. O'Neill, Rhode Island Attorney General Race
1985-1986 Law Clerk, Honorable Neil Lynch, Associate Justice, Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
1984-1985 Law Clerk, Honorable Bruce M. Seyla, Judge, United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island (Now United States Court of Appeals, 1st Circuit)
1984 Summer Law Clerk, Palmer & Dodge
1983 Summer Law Clerk, Cahill Gordon & Reindel
1981-1983 Summer Law Clerk, LeBoeuf, Lamb, Leiby & MacRae
1980-1981 Consumer Protection Unit Investigator, Office of the Attorney General of the State of Rhode Island
1979-1980 Paralegal, Office of the Public Defender of the State of Rhode Island
Speaking Engagements
BOOKS, PUBLICATIONSCo-Author, “From Surviving to Thriving,” Inside Higher Ed, January 6, 2021"Title IX Compliance Series," A Five-Part Video Series and Instructional Course (2014 Magna Publications, Inc.)"Title IX for Faculty: Your Role in Helping Students," A Video and Instructional Course (2014 Magna Publications, Inc.)"Title IX for Students: What You Need to Know," A Video and Instructional Course (2014 Magna Publications, Inc.)Higher Education and the Law: Cases and Materials, FOUNDATION PRESS 2014 [with J. Areen]The Rights and Responsibilities of the Modern University: The Rise of the Facilitator University, 2nd ed., CAROLINA ACADEMIC PRESS 2013The Foundations of Higher Education Law and Policy: Basic Legal Rules, Concepts and Principles for Student Affairs, NASPA 2011Beyond Discipline – Managing the Modern Higher Education Environment, HIEROPHANT ENTERPRISES, INC. 2009The Rights and Responsibilities of the Modern University: Who Assumes the Risks of College Life?, CAROLINA ACADEMIC PRESS 1999 [with R. Bickel] [ Reviewed by Cranman & Ward, 26 J.C. & U.L. 389 (Fall 1999)]"Secrets of Basic Tort Law," A 4 Hour Audio Tape Series on Basic Tort Law (1998 Hierophant Enterprises, Inc.)“Talking Points – Caulking the Cracks in Campus Safety,” Currents Magazine, a publication of CASE (Feb. 2014)“Welcome to Compliance U: The Board’s Role in the Regulatory Era,” The Association of Governing Board’s Trusteeship Magazine, No. 4 Vol. 21 (July/August 2013)“What the New Campus Safety Center Can Accomplish” The Chronicle of Higher Education (July 15, 2013) “The College ‘Court’ Phenomenon” Spring 2013 edition of NASPA’s Leadership Exchange“Time for Tenure for SSAOs” Winter 2013 edition of NASPA’s Leadership Exchange“Cardiac Evaluation of Collegiate Student-Athletes: A Medical and Legal Perspective,” Am J Med 2012, [with Paterick TE, Jan MF, Paterick ZR, Umland MM, Kramer C, Seward JB, Tajik AJ, Maron BJ]SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTSFeatured Speaker, Mississippi State University Legal Issues Conference, Starkville, MS, April 30 – May 1, 2015Featured Speaker, National Inter-fraternity Council Meeting of the House of Delegates, Kansas City, MO, April 19, 2015Featured Speaker, Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education, Decatur, GA, March 27, 2015Program Developer and Trainer, The Four Corners of Title IX Regulatory Compliance Training, Roanoke, VA, March 19 – 20, 2015Featured Speaker, Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services, Campus Safety Conference, Portsmouth, VA, March 18, 2015Conference Chair and Speaker/Panelist, Stetson’s Annual National Conference on Law and Higher Education, Orlando, FL, February 12 – 16, 2015Program Developer and Trainer, The Four Corners of Title IX Regulatory Compliance Training, Roanoke, VA, November 13 – 14, 2014Program Developer and Speaker, The Title IX Compliance Institute, a Magna Publications, Inc. Program, Orlando, FL, November 6 – 9, 2014Keynote Presenter and Workshop Speaker, University Risk Management and Insurance Association (URMIA) 2015 Annual Conference, Louisville, KY, September 21 – 22, 2014Featured Speaker, National Association of Campus Activities (NACA) 2014 Student Organizations Institute, St. Louis, MO, June 26 – 27, 2014Featured Speaker, Meeting of the Kansas Board of Regents Institutions, Wichita, KS, June 24, 2014Featured Speaker, 6th Annual Higher Education Case Managers Association (HECMA) Roundtable, Tucson, AZ, June 19, 2014Featured Speaker, “The White House and OCR’s New Guidance on Title IX,” (webinar), Stetson University College of Law’s Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy, May 14, 2014Featured Speaker, “Academic Freedom and Autonomy at a Crossroads: Contours and Controversies,” (webinar), Paperclip Communications, March 26, 2014Keynote Speaker, Annual Conference of ASCA (Association of Student Conduct Administrators), St. Pete Beach, FL, February 6, 2014Speaker, Meeting of the Florida Association of Campus Safety and Security Administrators (FACSSA), Largo, FL, November 15, 2013Featured Speaker, “Legal Issues in Higher Education Today” (webinar) for Paperclip Communications, November 13, 2013Keynote Presenter and Workshop Speaker, 2013 Legal Issues in Higher Education Conference, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, October 14, 2013Featured Speaker, “Regulatory Overload in Higher Ed: Beware of ‘Compliance U,’” (webinar) for Magna Publications, September 11, 2013Featured Speaker, Partners in Prevention State-wide Meeting, “Federal Regulatory Efforts to Protect Student Safety,” Columbia, MO, July 26, 2013Lead Instructor, NASPA Certificate Program in Student Affairs Law and Policy, St. Pete Beach, Florida, July 8 - 12, 2013Speaker, Annual Meeting of Executive Directors for Private Education Insurance and Risk Management, Clearwater, FL, March 21, 2013Conference Chair and Speaker/Panelist, Annual National Conference on Law & Higher Education Policy, February 14 – 20, 2013Distinguished Lecturer, 18th Annual Jack Beyerl Student Affairs Lecture Series, Muncie, IN, January 28, 2013Featured Speaker, Westmoreland County Community College, Pittsburg, PA, January 11, 2013