Kara Sears
Harvard University has been involved in several lawsuits in recent years, including Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, President and Fellows of Harvard College v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and President and Fellows of Harvard College v. United States Department of Homeland Security. The case number for the lawsuit involving the Department of Health and Human Services is 1:25-cv-11048 (D. Mass.), while the case number for the lawsuit involving the Department of Homeland Security is 1:25-cv-11472 (D. Mass.). The case number for Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard is 1:14-cv-14176 (D. Mass.). These case numbers are important for tracking the progress and outcomes of the respective lawsuits involving Harvard University.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Plaintiff | Harvard University |
| Defendant | Trump Administration |
| Judge | Massachusetts District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs |
| Case Details | Harvard's lawsuit against the Trump administration's attempt to freeze more than $2.2 billion in federal funding to the University |
| Hearing Date | July 21 |
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What You'll Learn
Harvard's lawsuit against the Trump administration
Harvard University filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in May 2025, challenging the Department of Homeland Security's decision to revoke its ability to enrol international students. The lawsuit argued that the revocation was an unlawful retaliation for Harvard's resistance to the administration's attempts to control its conduct and speech. The case, assigned to District Judge Allison Dale Burroughs, resulted in a temporary restraining order that restored Harvard's access to visa programs and allowed it to continue enrolling foreign students.
Harvard's lawsuit also addressed the administration's freeze of nearly $3 billion in federal grants and the threat to revoke its tax-exempt status. The university contended that the funding freeze was unlawful and beyond the government's authority. According to Harvard President Alan Garber, the administration's actions jeopardized critical research in various fields and would have severe consequences for the nation's innovation and global leadership.
The dispute between Harvard and the Trump administration escalated over time. The administration accused Harvard of not doing enough to combat antisemitism and change its hiring and admissions practices. In response, Harvard denied the allegations and asserted its academic independence. The lawsuit highlighted the university's commitment to free speech and its refusal to surrender control over its curriculum, faculty, and student body to the federal government.
The case, President and Fellows of Harvard College v. United States Department of Homeland Security 1:25-cv-11472 (D. Mass.), gained widespread attention and involved other defendants, including the Departments of Justice and State, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and their respective agency heads. The outcome of the case had implications for thousands of international students and Harvard's academic and financial standing.
In addition to Harvard, the Trump administration targeted other elite institutions, alleging that they discriminated against conservative viewpoints and did not sufficiently clamp down on pro-Palestinian activists. The administration's actions sparked concerns about academic freedom and the role of universities in fostering diverse perspectives.
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Affirmative action lawsuit against Harvard
In 2013, Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) sued Harvard University in a US District Court in Boston, alleging that the university's undergraduate admission practices violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by discriminating against Asian Americans. SFFA claimed that Harvard imposed a "soft quota" of "racial balancing" that artificially depressed the number of Asian American applicants it admitted. The plaintiffs maintained that the proportion of Asians Harvard admitted was similar year after year, despite the increase in the number of Asian American applicants.
In 2019, a district court judge upheld Harvard's limited use of race as a factor in admissions, citing a lack of evidence of "discriminatory animus". In 2020, the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the district court's ruling. SFFA petitioned the Supreme Court in 2021, which agreed to hear the case. After the appointment of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who recused herself from the Harvard case, the Supreme Court issued its decision in 2023.
The Court ruled that race-based affirmative action programs in most college admissions violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. This decision overruled Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) and Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978), which validated some affirmative action in college admissions. The Court's ruling limited the consideration of race in college admissions, finding that Harvard's and the University of North Carolina's affirmative action programs were unconstitutional.
The decision was met with mixed reactions. While some supported the ruling, citing that affirmative action policies are arbitrary and do not enhance diversity, others, including Justice Sotomayor, defended affirmative action, saying she was a "product of affirmative action". In addition, certain Asian American advocacy groups filed amicus briefs in support of SFFA, while others filed briefs in support of Harvard.
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Harvard's race-conscious admissions policies
The case number for the Harvard lawsuit appears to be 600 U.S. 181 (2023). This case, Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, challenged Harvard's race-conscious admissions policies.
Harvard's admissions policies have been the subject of intense scrutiny and legal challenges in recent years. The lawsuit, brought by Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA), argued that Harvard's admissions practices were unconstitutional and discriminated against Asian American applicants. SFFA claimed that Harvard had imposed a "soft quota" of "racial balancing", which artificially lowered the number of Asian Americans admitted.
In 2019, a district court judge, Allison D. Burroughs, upheld Harvard's limited use of race as a factor in admissions, finding no evidence of "discriminatory animus" or "conscious prejudice". The judge acknowledged that Harvard attempted to maintain a similar level of racial diversity each year and used "racial makeup" as a factor, but ruled that there were no quotas in place. This decision was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in 2020.
However, in 2021, SFFA petitioned the Supreme Court, which agreed to hear the case. In 2023, the Supreme Court issued a 6-2 decision, ruling that race-based admissions policies at Harvard and the University of North Carolina were unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Chief Justice John Roberts held that affirmative action in college admissions is unconstitutional. This decision overruled previous rulings that had validated some affirmative action in college admissions, such as Bakke, Grutter v. Bollinger, and Regents of the University of California v. Bakke.
Several Asian American groups and the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund submitted amicus briefs in support of Harvard's race-conscious admissions policies, arguing that race-conscious admissions are vital for creating diverse classrooms and fostering equal opportunity. Despite the Supreme Court's ruling, the debate around race-conscious admissions policies continues, with higher education leaders emphasizing the importance of diverse communities in preparing students for an increasingly pluralistic and global world.
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Harvard's defence of its holistic admissions process
The case number for the lawsuit against Harvard University's admissions process is 600 U.S. 181 (2023). The case, Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, was a landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court, ruling that race-based affirmative action programs in college admissions violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Harvard University has defended its holistic admissions process, which considers race as one of many factors, as necessary to assemble a diverse student body. Twenty-six Harvard student and alumni groups, represented by the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), submitted amicus briefs condemning the lawsuit filed by Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA). They argued that the lawsuit sought to eliminate the consideration of race in Harvard's admissions process, threatening the diversity of the college.
Furthermore, Harvard's defence also highlights the essential contributions that students of colour and their organizations have made to the university. They argue that eliminating race from the admissions process would deprive students of the best education Harvard has to offer. The university's holistic admissions process considers academic performance, extracurricular activities, non-cognitive traits, and personal experiences to get a better view of the applicant as a whole.
In addition, Harvard's defence of its holistic admissions process is supported by over 40 years of legal precedent from the Supreme Court, which has held that race is an important and permissible consideration in higher education admissions to further the educational benefits of a diverse student body. The district court's ruling in favour of Harvard's admissions process followed this precedent, and the university complied with the law while remaining steadfast in its belief in the importance of diversity.
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Harvard lawsuit against the US government
In April 2025, Harvard University filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, challenging the government's decision to freeze its funding. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Boston, argued that the funding freeze was unlawful and beyond the government's authority. According to Harvard President Alan Garber, the government's demands sought to control whom the university hires and what they teach, imposing ""unprecedented and improper control" over the institution. The lawsuit also highlighted the potential consequences of the funding freeze, including the disruption of ongoing research projects and the loss of jobs for researchers.
The lawsuit was prompted by a series of demands made by the Trump administration in an April 11 letter. The administration demanded that Harvard regulate its scholarship, admissions, and hiring practices to align with government criteria, including the hiring of a "critical mass" of students and faculty to provide "viewpoint diversity." The university refused to surrender its academic independence and comply with these demands, resulting in the funding freeze. Harvard argued that the government's actions violated the First Amendment, which protects free speech against government interference, and that the swift imposition of the $2.2 billion funding freeze without following standard procedures was illegal.
The case gained further attention due to the involvement of Judge Allison D. Burroughs, an appointee of former President Barack Obama. Judge Burroughs expressed concern about the disruptive effect of the Trump administration's policies on Harvard's ability to host foreign students. She granted a temporary restraining order to halt the Department of Homeland Security's efforts to revoke Harvard's authority to sponsor international students, which could have impacted around 7,000 students and scholars. The outcome of the case was highly anticipated, with experts suggesting that Harvard had a strong case against the Trump administration's funding freeze and its attempts to restrict foreign students' attendance at the university.
In addition to the lawsuit's direct implications for Harvard University, the case also raised questions about Supreme Court justice recusal rules. With four Supreme Court justices having attended Harvard, the potential conflict of interest in hearing the case sparked debate. While being an alumnus of a university involved in litigation does not typically warrant recusal, deeper involvement or other factors could influence a justice's decision to recuse themselves.
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Frequently asked questions
1:14-cv-14176.
The Supreme Court ruled that race-based affirmative action programs in most college admissions violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
1:25-cv-11048.
1:25-cv-11472.
A judge granted a temporary restraining order, restoring Harvard's status as a sponsor of foreign students and workers. The case is ongoing.
