From today's decision by Judge Gerald Austin McHugh (E.D. Pa.) in Landau v. Haverford College:
On May 13, 2024, Plaintiff "Jews at Haverford," which purports to be an association of individuals associated with Haverford College, initiated this Title VI action against Defendant Haverford College. An amended complaint followed, adding Haverford Alumni Ally Landau and current students "HJSB" and "HJSC" as individual plaintiffs to the lawsuit. Plaintiffs generally contend that Haverford College both enables and perpetuates a hostile educational environment for its Jewish students and faculty who support the state of Israel, in violation of Title VI and assorted contractual promises between the school and its students.
Plaintiffs HJSB and HJSC now move to proceed under pseudonym in this case. Haverford, to its credit, does not oppose the Plaintiffs' request to proceed under pseudonym in all public-facing filings.
But Haverford's consent does not end the inquiry, because open courts are a cornerstone of the U.S. judiciary. Since pseudonyms interfere with the public's right to access judicial proceedings, such motions must only be granted in exceptional circumstances….
The court concluded that this case involves such an exceptional circumstance, but not just because of fear of "purely social and reputational harms":
