GRAND FORKS — A trial date has been set for the Title IX lawsuit brought forth by former UND women’s soccer coach Chris Logan against UND.
The jury trial is scheduled for 9:30 a.m., May 11, 2027, in Fargo before Chief Judge Peter Welte. The trial is estimated to last five to seven days.
The original complaint — Logan claims employment retaliation for raising gender equity concerns — was submitted April 16, with UND’s legal response filed May 22. The trial date was established on June 27.
UND’s four-page legal response includes a line-by-line address of Logan’s original complaint, denying the allegations. The legal response is signed by North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley and assistant attorney generals Courtney Titus, Jane Sportiello and Grant Ellenson.
UND’s legal response ended by requesting the case be dismissed.
“Defendant respectfully requests that Plaintiff’s Complaint be, in all things, dismissed with prejudice and Defendant be awarded costs, disbursements, attorney’s fees, and any other relief the Court deems just and equitable,” the document said.
According to the original complaint, Logan alleges he was “wrongfully terminated after reporting gender-based discrimination in athletic facilities and programs and participating in a Title IX investigation into those inequities.”
The lawsuit claims Logan’s dismissal — his contract expired and was not renewed — resulted in “significant harm to his career, reputation and emotional well-being.”
The lawsuit outlines specific critiques of UND’s playing surface at Bronson Field, alleging it failed to meet NCAA recommended dimensions of 120 yards by 75 yards, as well as “safety hazards, including significant declines at field edges, a deep embankment near the goal creating safety concerns, and a northwest side decline making corner kicks nearly impossible.”
In Logan’s eight seasons at UND, the Fighting Hawks were 51-68-24 overall and 21-41-12 in conference play.
Last season, Logan’s final year at UND, the Hawks went 4-8-6 overall and 0-4-4 in Summit play.
UND gave Logan a two-year extension in November 2022. After the extension, the Hawks won one of 16 conference games in two seasons (1-7-8) and missed the Summit League tournament both years.
On Jan. 3, 2025, UND named Henrik Sohn, who had been Logan’s assistant coach last season, as the next head coach of the Hawks.
On Feb. 20, 2025, Minot State announced Logan as the next head coach of the Division II program.
On Nov. 26, 2024, one day after UND announced it wouldn’t renew Logan’s contract, the Herald released a story in which Logan claimed the Title IX investigation resulted in his non-renewal.
Within the Herald story, UND spokesman David Dodds said: “The decision announced Monday regarding Chris Logan was made independent of and is not connected in any way to any ongoing internal review involving the UND soccer program. We have nothing further to add as we do not typically comment on employee personnel matters apart from what is stated in university public releases.”
Miller has covered sports at the Grand Forks Herald since 2004 and was the state sportswriter of the year in 2019 (NSMA, NDAPSSA), 2022 (NSMA, NDAPSSA) and 2024 (NDAPSSA).
His primary beat is UND football but also reports on a variety of UND sports and local preps.
He can be reached at (701) 780-1121, tmiller@gfherald.com or on Twitter at @tommillergf.