The Department of Justice filed a new lawsuit against Harvard University, accusing it of failing to hand over documents and comply with a federal investigation into alleged racial discrimination in its admissions process, in the latest escalation of Donald Trump’s long-running legal pursuit of the nation’s oldest university.
Harvard stressed in a statement that it was responding to inquiries “in good faith” and prepared to engage “according to the process required by law”.
In its lawsuit, filed in a federal court in Massachusetts on Friday, the justice department accuses Harvard of failing for over 10 months to comply with the government’s request to provide documents, including applicant-level admissions data, and other records and information pertaining to the investigation.
“Harvard has thwarted the Department’s efforts to investigate potential discrimination,” the justice department claimed in the filing. “It has slow-walked the pace of production and refused to provide pertinent documents relating to applicant-level admissions decisions … The repeatedly extended deadlines for document production have long passed.”
A Harvard spokesperson said: “Harvard is committed to following the law, including civil rights laws in connection with admissions and financial aid, and Harvard has complied with and continues to comply with the law under the Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) decision.
“Harvard has been responding to the government’s inquiries in good faith and continues to be willing to engage with the government according to the process required by law.
“The University will continue to defend itself against these retaliatory actions which have been initiated simply because Harvard refused to surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights in response to unlawful government overreach.”
The justice department asked the court to declare Harvard in violation of Title IV of the Civil Rights Act, and order the university to comply with the government’s document requests.
Trump said earlier this month that his administration was seeking $1bn from Harvard to settle investigations into school policies over alleged antisemitism. It followed a New York Times report alleging that Trump had dropped a previous demand for $200m as part of a settlement from the Ivy League school.
Since returning to office, Trump has repeatedly come after higher education institutions, including Harvard, accusing the university of mishandling antisemitism and allowing alleged civil rights violations on a campus he says is dominated by “radical left” ideologies – a charge academics and free speech experts have denounced as a threat to academic freedom.
The Trump administration has also threatened to withhold $9bn in federal research funding, demanded that Harvard end its diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and required reporting of international students who violate campus rules. It also previously tried to block the university from enrolling international students.
In response, Harvard sued the administration in April last year, accusing it of trying to “gain control of academic decision-making”. At the time, Harvard’s president, Alan Garber, vowed that “the university will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights”.
Garber, who is Jewish, also contested Trump’s antisemitism charges, saying in a statement last April: “As a Jew and as an American, I know very well that there are valid concerns about rising antisemitism. To address it effectively requires understanding, intention, and vigilance. Harvard takes that work seriously. We will continue to fight hate with the urgency it demands as we fully comply with our obligations under the law. That is not only our legal responsibility. It is our moral imperative.”
In September, a federal judge ruled that Trump had unlawfully canceled $2.2bn in research grants, barring the administration from cutting off Harvard’s research funding. Weeks later, Trump said the administration had reached a deal requiring the university to pay $500m to settle the dispute with the federal government.
Last December, the Trump administration appealed against the judge’s September ruling.
Commenting on Friday’s lawsuit, Todd Wolfson, president of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), said: “This is a continuation of the Trump admin’s playbook of attempting to use the power of the federal government to impose their ideological agenda on institutions of higher education. By misstating and misapplying the law, the administration has repeatedly sought to force universities to adopt policies that will exacerbate the lack of diversity, particularly at elite educational institutions.
“The suit is also further evidence that the administration believes that the most pressing form of discrimination in our country is discrimination against white males – who still dominate political and corporate leadership in the United States. The AAUP stands strongly against this newest attempt by the Trump administration to compel universities to bend to its political agenda.”
Crimson Courage, a group of Harvard alumni “standing up for academic freedom at Harvard and beyond”, said that Harvard “should keep personal applicant data confidential to protect students from federal government retaliation”.
“As Harvard has stated, they have already complied with all applicable laws,” it said. “Furthermore, DoJ’s complaint only underscores how the Trump administration is using every available weapon to subject Harvard to endless litigation. As usual, the Trump administration is misusing the legal system to impose its views and values on Harvard in an attempt to control its institutional autonomy and academic freedom.”
