Department of Justice Sues UCLA: What Does It Mean for Students?

July 10, 2026

Questions about antisemitism and anti-Israeli bias continue to dog the University of California at Los Angeles. Now, the Trump administration’s Department of Justice is suing UCLA, claiming it doesn’t do enough to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment.

Specifically:

  • The DOJ claims UCLA has been out of compliance with Title VI rules barring discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin since the large protests over Israel’s bombardment of Gaza in response to the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks.
  • The government wants to cease paying UCLA the outstanding balance on existing grants, and it wants UCLA to return all of the grant money it’s received for the last two years.

Title VI’s anti-discrimination rules apply to every institution that receives federal funds. If you attend a federally-funded college or university in the U.S., Title VI says, you should never be excluded from full participation on the basis of your background or identity.

Students who’ve been prevented from fully accessing everything their school has to offer because of who they are or where their family comes from should contact the Education Law Team at the LLF National Law Firm immediately. Call 888-535-3686 or send us a message and claim your Title VI rights today.

What is DOJ Saying?

The lawsuit is only the latest salvo in the dispute between UCLA and the Trump administration. Last year, following an investigation, the administration suspended $584 million in grants to UCLA. In early 2026, DOJ sued the school for “subjecting its Jewish and Israeli employees to an antisemitic hostile work environment,” according to Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general for civil rights at the DOJ.

“Now,” says Dhillon, “the Department of Justice calls UCLA to account for its toleration of the equally appalling hostile educational environment against its Jewish and Israeli students.” In addition to paying back the grant money, DOJ wants:

  • Students, faculty, and staff who discriminate against Jewish and Israeli students to face “timely and meaningful” discipline; and
  • Campus policies that mandate police intervention during certain types of campus protests; and
  • A court-appointed monitor to oversee UCLA’s Title VI compliance

What is UCLA Saying?

“Let me be direct,” UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk wrote in response to DOJ’s demands. “The suggestion that UCLA has been passive in the face of antisemitism is simply wrong. Combating antisemitism is a moral imperative — one rooted, for me, in personal history that makes indifference unthinkable.” (Frenk’s grandparents fled Nazi Germany.)

According to Frenk, the university is committed to the fight against antisemitism. In the last two years, UCLA has made improvements to the operations of its civil rights office and hired a Title VI coordinator, as well as launched initiatives for combatting anti-Jewish and anti-Israeli bias on campus.

What Does This Mean for Students?

While the government and American colleges and universities battle it out in the courts, students are doing their best to complete their coursework and navigate the rich offerings available to them on campus. When they can’t — when discrimination and bias against their race, their color, or their nationality throws up a roadblock — they can feel powerless.

They’re not. When they partner with the LLF National Law Firm’s Education Law Team, they can hold the mighty accountable. Claim your right to your education today: Call 888-535-3686 or send us a message online and tell us about your case.

 

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