Judge Dismisses Trump Administration Lawsuit Against Harvard

A federal judge in Boston dismissed the Justice Department's lawsuit against Harvard University on Thursday. The suit had alleged Harvard failed to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment in violation of federal civil rights law.

• Nearly $1 billion in federal grants and an independent monitor were at stake.
• Judge Stearns found incidents cited were 'too isolated and episodic' to show ongoing violations.
• Only 3 alleged incidents came after the 2023–2024 school year, all in March 2025.
• Stearns was appointed to the federal bench by President Bill Clinton.

Why it matters: Title VI of the Civil Rights Act bars discrimination based on race, color, and national origin in federally funded programs. The government argued Harvard's campus environment for Jewish and Israeli students violated that standard.

• Stearns ruled the law's purpose is to push schools toward compliance, not to penalize them once they comply.
• A separate federal judge previously ruled the administration had unlawfully frozen more than $2 billion in Harvard research grants.

How 20 sources split on this story

Where they split: The disagreement is whether Thursday's ruling reflects a legitimate legal deficiency in the government's complaint or a broader pattern of legally improper pressure on Harvard.

What’s next: DOJ's First Circuit appeal over $2 billion in frozen research grants remains active.

• DOJ and Harvard did not immediately respond to requests for comment after the ruling.
• Will the DOJ refile with updated allegations of post-June 2025 noncompliance?
• How will the First Circuit rule on the frozen research grants appeal?