The Trump administration can no longer fine or cut federal funding to the University of California over allegations that the system permits antisemitism or other discrimination, according to a sweeping ruling issued Friday by U.S. District Judge Rita Lin in San Francisco.
The preliminary injunction bars the administration from freezing grants, demanding massive repayments, or stripping eligibility for federal funding without following due-process requirements such as notifying faculty and holding formal hearings. The decision follows months of escalating federal pressure on universities accused of allowing discrimination tied to campus protests and political tensions.
Over the summer, federal officials ordered UCLA to pay $1.2 billion to restore frozen research funds and meet future funding requirements after accusing the campus of failing to prevent antisemitism. Similar funding freezes have been issued against private schools including Columbia University. But Judge Lin sharply criticized the administration’s tactics, writing that faculty unions and other groups presented “overwhelming evidence” that federal officials were carrying out a coordinated campaign to purge what they called “woke,” “left,” or “socialist” viewpoints from major universities.
She said the administration’s actions at UC amounted to “coercive and retaliatory conduct” that violated both the First Amendment and Tenth Amendment, adding that the government appeared to be using civil-rights investigations to justify financially crippling universities unless they aligned with the administration’s ideology.
UC President James B. Milliken has previously warned that a $1.2 billion fine would devastate the university system, widely regarded as one of the top public higher-education networks in the country. UC is currently in settlement talks with the administration but is not a party in this lawsuit. In a statement, the university reiterated its commitment to academic freedom and independent governance.
Federal officials had also demanded that UCLA enforce the administration’s views on gender identity and screen international applicants for “anti-American,” “anti-Western,” or antisemitic leanings. Similar settlements were previously reached with Brown University ($50 million) and Columbia University ($221 million).
Judge Lin’s injunction indefinitely blocks the administration from conditioning grants on any measures that would violate campus free-speech rights. She also highlighted evidence that faculty had begun avoiding certain research and teaching topics out of fear they would be labeled too “left” or “woke.”
The White House and the Department of Justice have not yet commented on the ruling.
