Isophoric News · Tuesday, November 3, 2026
Judge dismisses Justice Department suit seeking Harvard admissions data, without prejudice
U.S. District Judge Myong J. Joun in Boston on Monday dismissed, without prejudice, the federal government's lawsuit to force Harvard University to hand over applicant-level admissions data, ruling that the Justice Department had not shown it took the steps the law requires before going to court. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, an agency must tell a recipient of federal funds that it is failing to comply and determine that compliance cannot be secured voluntarily, the judge wrote, and the complaint did not allege that the department told Harvard it would sue. He wrote that the ruling does not decide whether Harvard has discriminated or whether it may ultimately have to provide the data. The Justice Department and the Education Department sought five years of admissions data, including race and ethnicity, grades, test scores and essays, to check whether Harvard still considers race after the Supreme Court's 2023 decision barring race-conscious admissions, according to The Associated Press as published by ABC News. The judge also dismissed a breach of contract claim, again without prejudice, and denied Harvard's alternative request for a stay as moot. Neither Harvard nor the Justice Department responded to the AP's request for comment.
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