DOJ to challenge dismissal of Harvard civil rights suit

Chris Dolmetsch, Bloomberg News on Aug 27, 2026

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Trump administration told a federal judge it will challenge the dismissal of its lawsuit against Harvard University alleging that the school violated civil rights laws by failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students after the October 2023 attack by Hamas on Israel.

Justice Department lawyers notified U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns in Boston on Thursday that they will ask the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to overturn his Aug. 13 ruling.

Stearns determined the government didn’t sustain its claims that Harvard violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. He said the DOJ claims focused “almost entirely” on the 2023-24 school year and cited only three incidents after that to support its allegation that Harvard violated the law, which bars discrimination on the basis of race, color and national origin.

A spokesperson for Harvard didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment after normal business hours.

Harvard has been a top target of the administration’s efforts to remake higher education. What began as criticism of the university’s handling of alleged antisemitism on campus following the October 2023 Hamas attack and the subsequent war in Gaza later broadened into a push to remake and gain oversight of Harvard’s admissions, hiring and governance.

Federal agencies have also started several civil rights and other investigations into Harvard as part of the pressure campaign.

While other schools including Columbia University and Brown University reached settlements with the administration over similar claims, Harvard hasn’t made such an agreement and has won court cases over the White House’s attempts to cut off federal research funding and halt international student enrollment. The Trump administration is also appealing the ruling over the funding.