A federal judge in Boston on Monday dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit that sought to force Harvard University to turn over records for an investigation into whether the school still considers race in its student admissions process.
US District Judge Myong Joun rejected the suit on narrow procedural grounds, stressing that his decision did not resolve whether the Justice Department and the US Department of Education could ultimately seek data on the thousands of high school students who sought admission to Harvard. He agreed with Harvard that the department sued without taking all the legally required steps aimed at securing the university's voluntary compliance with its demands for applicant-level data.
Joun wrote that the complaint did not allege that DOJ informed Harvard of the action it would take if Harvard failed to comply, nor did it allege the specific failure identified.
The Justice Department filed the case before Joun in February, arguing that Harvard was not complying with investigations into whether it is following the US Supreme Court's 2023 ruling rejecting race-conscious admissions programs used to boost enrollment of minority students. The administration said it needed years of applicant-level data to determine whether race remains a factor in Harvard's decisions and whether the university is complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bars racial discrimination in education programs.
Joun said he was not resolving whether Harvard has discriminated or whether it may ultimately be required to provide data to the agencies, and that the Justice Department could try to pursue a similar case again if it takes additional administrative steps.
Harvard's lawyers countered that the case was filed to retaliate against the university for refusing demands that it overhaul its governance, hiring and academic programs to align with the administration's agenda. They said the lawsuit came after President Donald Trump announced in early February that he was ending settlement talks and wanted $1 billion in damages from Harvard, which he said had "been, for a long time, behaving very badly".
Harvard has been a top target of the administration's effort to leverage federal funding and government power to force changes at universities that Trump says are dominated by "radical left" ideologies. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based university has already secured rulings from other judges rejecting the administration's efforts to terminate over $2 billion in grants, block the school from hosting international students and sue it for allegedly failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment.
Data released by Harvard last week showed Black undergraduate enrollment fell for a third straight year since the Supreme Court barred race-conscious admissions, dropping to 9.3 per cent in the class of 2030 from 11.5 per cent in the class of 2029.
The Justice Department and Harvard did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- Harvard keeps its applicant-level data for now, and the administration must go back through the required administrative steps if it wants to compel it.
- The ruling leaves untouched the underlying question the investigation was opened to answer: whether race still plays a role in Harvard's admissions decisions.
- Other universities facing similar federal data demands will be watching whether the Justice Department refiles with a fuller record, a template that could be used elsewhere.
Background
Harvard is a private Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and one of the most selective and closely watched institutions in American higher education. Its admissions practices have been the subject of litigation for years, and the Supreme Court's 2023 ruling against race-conscious admissions changed the legal framework under which selective US universities build their classes. The Trump administration has pressed universities on admissions, governance and funding, and Harvard has been a central target of that pressure.
Key Perspectives
Justice Department: argued it needed years of applicant-level admissions data to determine whether race remains a factor in Harvard's decisions and whether the university is complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Harvard: its lawyers argued the lawsuit was filed to retaliate after the university refused demands to overhaul its governance, hiring and academic programs, and came after Trump ended settlement talks and sought $1 billion in damages.
Judge Myong Joun: found the department sued without taking all legally required steps toward voluntary compliance, while stressing that he was not deciding whether Harvard has discriminated or whether it may ultimately have to provide the data.
What to Watch
- Whether the Justice Department refiles after additional administrative steps, which Joun said remained open to it.
- Whether the Education Department pursues the same applicant-level data through a separate administrative process.
- Harvard's next admissions data release, after Black undergraduate enrollment fell for a third consecutive year.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedA federal judge dismissed the Justice Department’s lawsuit seeking Harvard admissions records.US Top News and Analysis: “A federal judge dismissed on Monday a lawsuit by President Donald Trump's administration seeking to force Harvard University to turn over records”
- SupportedJudge Myong Joun dismissed the case on narrow procedural grounds, without deciding whether the agencies could ultimately seek applicant-level data.US Top News and Analysis: “The judge stressed that his decision rested on narrow, procedural grounds and did not resolve whether the Justice Department and US Department of Education could ultimately seek data on thousands of high school students who sought admission at Harvard.”
- SupportedThe Justice Department had not taken all required steps to secure Harvard’s voluntary compliance before suing.US Top News and Analysis: “Joun agreed with Harvard that the Justice Department sued without taking all legally required steps aimed at securing the university's voluntary compliance with its demands for applicant-level data.”
- SupportedJoun said the complaint did not allege that DOJ told Harvard what action it would take if Harvard failed to comply, or allege the specific failure identified.US Top News and Analysis: “For example, the complaint does not allege that DOJ informed Harvard of the action it would take — namely, litigation — should Harvard fail to comply, nor does the complaint allege the specific failure identified,”
- SupportedThe Justice Department filed the case before Joun in February.US Top News and Analysis: “The Justice Department filed the case before Joun in February”
- SupportedThe administration said it needed years of applicant-level data to assess whether race remains a factor and whether Harvard complies with Title VI.US Top News and Analysis: “The administration said it needed years of applicant-level admissions data to determine whether race remains a factor in Harvard's admissions decisions and if the university is complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964”
- SupportedHarvard’s lawyers argued the lawsuit was retaliation for Harvard refusing demands to change its governance, hiring and academic programs.US Top News and Analysis: “The university's lawyers countered that the case was filed to retaliate against Harvard for refusing demands that it overhaul its governance, hiring and academic programs to align with the administration's agenda.”
- SupportedTrump said Harvard had “been, for a long time, behaving very badly”.US Top News and Analysis: “which he said had "been, for a long time, behaving very badly."”
- SupportedTrump said universities were dominated by “radical left” ideologies.US Top News and Analysis: “universities that Trump says are dominated by "radical left" ideologies.”
- SupportedOther judges rejected efforts to terminate over $2 billion in Harvard grants, block the university from hosting international students, and sue it over alleged failures to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment.US Top News and Analysis: “rulings from other judges rejecting the administration's efforts to terminate over $2 billion in grants, block the school from hosting international students and sue it for allegedly failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment.”
- SupportedHarvard data showed Black undergraduate enrollment fell for a third straight year, from 11.5% in the class of 2029 to 9.3% in the class of 2030.US Top News and Analysis: “Data released by Harvard last week showed Black undergraduate enrollment fell for a third straight year since the Supreme Court barred race-conscious admissions, dropping to 9.3% in the class of 2030 from 11.5% in the class of 2029.”
- SupportedThe Justice Department and Harvard did not immediately respond to requests for comment.US Top News and Analysis: “The Justice Department and Harvard did not immediately respond to requests for comment.”