In January of 1979 the Gay People of Georgetown University apply for official recognition with the Student Activities Commission, which they were granted. The following month the recognition is rescinded by the Associate Dean of Students William Scott. It would take a year of struggling to get recognition for Georgetown Law faculty members and 23 student members of the Gay People of Georgetown University group file suit in D.C. Superior Court on April 30, 1980 against the University, President Father Healy and Dean McCarthy. The case continued for over seven years until the District of Columbia Appeals Court ruled in favor of the Gay People of Georgetown University on November 20, 1987.