USAupdated 1h ago2 min read
Archive photo · 14 March 2007Federal Judge Myong Joun Dismisses DOJ Suit Seeking Harvard Admissions Race Data
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Judge Myong Joun dismissed DOJ suit seeking race-related Harvard admissions records on procedural grounds. Court found DOJ failed to take necessary legal steps before filing suit.
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Judge Rejects DOJ Bid
A federal judge in Boston dismissed a lawsuit by US President Donald Trump’s administration seeking to force Harvard University to turn over records for an investigation into whether Harvard continues to consider race in its student admissions process. US District Judge Myong Joun rejected the US Department of Justice’s lawsuit, which Harvard contended was filed as part of a broader campaign by the Republican president’s administration against the Ivy League school. 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.
The judge agreed with Harvard that the Justice Department had not taken the necessary legal steps before suing the university. The dismissal left open the possibility of a renewed effort, because the judge’s findings addressed only whether the DOJ and the Department of Education could currently ask the court to compel Harvard to turn over the data the agencies seek.
Competing Accounts
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. Harvard’s lawyers countered that the case was filed to retaliate against Harvard for refusing demands to overhaul its governance, hiring and academic programs to align with the administration’s agenda.
DOE spokesperson Ellen Keast said Harvard has a “well-documented” history of discrimination, and Keast argued that a judge was “shielding Harvard from accountability.” Then-Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a February statement announcing the suit that “Harvard has failed to disclose the data we need to ensure that its admissions are free of discrimination.”
What Happens Next
The judge dismissed the complaint without prejudice, opening the door for the government to sue again if it can prove Harvard will not comply voluntarily with its demands. The judge clarified that his findings only addressed whether the DOJ and the Department of Education can currently ask the court to compel Harvard into turning over the data the agencies seek. Harvard had 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.
Harvard’s motion to dismiss on June 4 said the school has endured a “government-initiated onslaught” since President Donald Trump reclaimed the White House. Harvard had 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.