A federal judge in Boston has thrown out the Trump administration’s lawsuit seeking access to Harvard University’s student admissions records, finding that the Justice Department failed to follow key legal procedures before taking the university to court.
US District Judge Myong Joun dismissed the case on Monday, siding with Harvard’s argument that the government had not exhausted the legally required steps to obtain the information voluntarily.
The ruling, however, does not settle the larger dispute over whether Harvard must disclose years of admissions data or whether its selection process complies with federal law.
Court Finds Procedural Flaws in DOJ’s Case
The Justice Department filed the lawsuit in February, seeking detailed admissions records covering thousands of applicants. The department said the information was necessary to determine whether Harvard continued to consider race in its admissions decisions despite a landmark 2023 Supreme Court ruling prohibiting race-conscious admissions policies.
Judge Joun concluded that the government’s complaint failed to establish that it had properly warned Harvard about the consequences of refusing to comply with its demands.
The judge noted that the complaint did not show that the department had informed the university that litigation would follow if it failed to provide the requested records.
Harvard had argued that the administration launched the case without meeting the procedural requirements governing such investigations.
The dismissal is limited to those procedural shortcomings. The Justice Department remains free to pursue the matter again after completing the necessary administrative steps.
Harvard’s Wider Battle With the Trump Administration
The admissions records dispute is part of a broader confrontation between Harvard and the Trump administration, which has sought to use federal funding and government authority to push universities toward changes in their policies and academic operations.
Harvard has already secured several significant legal victories against the administration. Courts have blocked efforts to cut more than $2 billion in federal grants and prevent the university from enrolling international students.
The university is also facing a separate federal lawsuit accusing it of failing to adequately protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment.
Harvard has maintained that the administration’s actions are politically motivated, arguing that its demands extend beyond legitimate oversight and seek to reshape the institution’s governance, hiring practices and academic programs.
The dispute intensified after President Donald Trump announced in February that settlement negotiations had ended and that he wanted $1 billion in damages from the university.
Admissions Data Remains Under Scrutiny
The Justice Department’s investigation centers on compliance with the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision striking down race-based admissions policies at Harvard and the University of North Carolina.
Federal authorities have argued that access to applicant-level records spanning several years is necessary to determine whether Harvard is continuing to use race as a factor in admissions, potentially violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Harvard’s recently released enrollment figures have added another dimension to the debate. Black undergraduate representation in the incoming class of 2030 fell to 9.3%, compared with 11.5% in the previous year’s class, marking a third consecutive annual decline following the Supreme Court ruling.
Despite the dismissal, the legal question surrounding Harvard’s admissions practices remains unresolved.
Judge Joun made clear that his decision did not determine whether the university had engaged in racial discrimination or whether federal agencies could ultimately obtain the records they are seeking.
For now, the administration’s investigation has suffered a procedural setback rather than a definitive defeat on the merits.
