Affirmative Action
‘Complete Switch in Position’: Legal Experts Say Biden Likely to Back Harvard in Race-Conscious Admissions Suit
Many education and legal experts expect President-elect Joe Biden's Justice Department will extend support to universities — including Harvard — currently embroiled in legal challenges from anti-affirmative action group Students for Fair Admissions.
Experts Envision Roads to Supreme Court for Harvard Admissions Lawsuit
With SFFA President Edward J. Blum pledging to further appeal the SFFA v. Harvard lawsuit, legal experts say they are confident SFFA will try to take the case to the Supreme Court. They also say that if that effort succeeds, the Court’s virtually unprecedented conservative makeup would prove a threat to race-conscious admissions and longstanding precedent in affirmative action.
Experts Say SCOTUS Nomination Threatens Harvard Admissions Lawsuit Ruling
President Donald J. Trump’s nomination of Judge Amy V. Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court Saturday may endanger Harvard’s chances of victory in the lawsuit against it by anti-affirmative action group Students for Fair Admissions, should the case proceed to the highest court in the land, higher education law experts say.
Harvard Files Reply Brief in Admissions Case Appeal
Harvard submitted a brief in a federal appeals court Thursday reiterating its arguments that Harvard College does not discriminate against Asian American applicants, marking the latest development in years of litigation over affirmative action in the College’s admissions process.
Following SFFA Attorney’s Comments at Event, Harvard Law Students Debate Discrimination Against Asian Americans
Students engaged in debate over comments about discrimination against Asian American students during a Harvard Law School event. At the event, some students laughed and shouted their agreement after lead Students for Fair Admissions lawyer Adam K. Mortara made a quip about personality ratings differences.
Federal Judge Rules Harvard's Admissions Policies Do Not Discriminate Against Asian American Applicants
The ruling brings an end to this stage of the lawsuit filed against the University by anti-affirmative action group Students for Fair Admissions in 2014. SFFA alleged that the College's admissions policies discriminate against Asian American applicants by holding them to higher standards.
Lawsuit Alleging Harvard Law Review Discriminates in Member Selection Process Dismissed
A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Thursday that was brought against the Harvard Law Review in October alleging the legal journal violates federal anti-discrimination laws in its member and article selection policies.
Affirmative Action Can Limit the Influence of Money in Higher Education, Harvard Ed School Dean Says
Graduate School of Education Dean Bridget Terry Long said in a Tuesday interview that while money and other advantages skew access to higher education in the United States, research conducted at the Ed school may help alleviate its effects.
Harvard Admissions Trial Ruling Will Determine Facts for Future Appeals, Experts Say
Attorneys for Harvard and anti-affirmative action group Students for Fair Admissions had their last chance to present arguments in their ongoing battle over whether the College’s admissions processes discriminates against Asian-American applicants last week.
In Post-Trial Brief, NAACP Legal Defense Fund Defends Harvard’s Admissions Policy
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Legal Defense and Educational Fund argued that Harvard’s race-conscious admissions process is “necessary to reap the educational benefits of diversity” in a document filed in federal court Wednesday.
Harvard Admissions Goes to Trial
The admissions lawsuit that could shape the future of affirmative action escalated in 2018 as Harvard and plaintiff Students for Fair Admissions sparred over allegations of anti-Asian-American bias in the College’s admissions process.
Harvard, SFFA Spar Over Key Takeaways from Admissions Trial
Harvard and Students For Fair Admissions continued to spar over whether the College’s admissions process discriminates against Asian-American applicants in court documents filed Wednesday.
Harvard, Law Review Look to Dismiss Anti-Affirmative Action Lawsuit Against the Publication
Lawyers for Harvard, Harvard Law School, and the Harvard Law Review filed motions Monday, asking the Court to dismiss a complaint brought by an anti-affirmative action group that alleges the Law Review’s editor selection process illegally uses “race and sex preferences.”
In Wake of Lawsuit, Students Reflect on Asian-American Identity
The trial over Harvard's affirmative action admissions policy ended last month, and students gathered on Friday afternoon to discuss the term "Asian American" and its relevance for students' identities.
11-2 Trial
Harvard lawyers Seth P. Waxman '73 and William F. Lee '72 speak to reporters outside the courthouse on the trial's final day.
11-2 Trial
Students for Fair Admissions lawyer Adam K. Mortara takes questions outside the courthouse soon after the trial concluded.
‘Wolf of Racial Bias’ Returns to Courtroom on Final Day of Harvard Admissions Trial
Lawyers for both Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions approached the wood-paneled witness stand one after the other Friday to deliver impassioned closing statements and rebuttals that stretched for hours.
In Admissions, Harvard Favors Those Who Fund It, Internal Emails Show
In one 2013 email headlined “My Hero,” former Kennedy School Dean Ellwood thanked Harvard's dean of admissions for his help accepting a set of students with very particular qualifications. "[Redacted] and [redacted] are all big wins. [Redacted] has already committed to a building.”
Meet the Lawyers Defending Harvard's Race-Conscious Admissions Policies
Meet the lawyers who will help Harvard defend against allegations it discriminates against Asian-Americans in its admissions process.
Diversity Dialogue
Students meet in Grays Hall Basement to discuss the ongoing affirmative action lawsuit against Harvard.
Judge Rules Harvard Admissions Suit Must Proceed to Trial
U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs ruled Friday that the admissions lawsuit alleging Harvard discriminates against Asian-American applicants must go to trial in October, thwarting Harvard's hopes to the contrary.
Yale Joins Harvard as Target of Federal Probe Into Alleged Discrimination Against Asian-Americans
Yale University — like Harvard — is now the subject of a Department of Justice probe into whether the school discriminates against Asian-American applicants in its admissions process.
As Admissions Trial Nears, Bacow Insists 'We Don't Discriminate Against Anybody'
The brand-new president said he is “confident” Harvard will prevail in court when the suit goes to trial on Oct. 15, though he is unsure what the Supreme Court may do should the case come before the nation's highest judges.
With Break Dancing and Slam Poetry, Students Host Pro-Affirmative Action Event
The event comes as Harvard’s affirmative action policies are set to face a legal challenge in federal court on Oct. 15.