Saturday, December 20, 2025 - The Trump administration has appealed a September court ruling that ordered the release of nearly 2.7 billion dollars in frozen research funding to Harvard University.
The appeal was filed late Thursday night in the United
States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, challenging a
September 3 decision by District Judge Allison D. Burroughs that granted
Harvard sweeping summary judgement on constitutional grounds.
In a brief notice, lawyers for the Department of
Justice said the government would appeal final judgements in two related cases,
one filed by Harvard and another brought by the Harvard faculty chapter of the
American Association of University Professors. The appeal moves the dispute to
the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and marks the next
stage of a legal battle that Judge Burroughs previously decided largely in
Harvard’s favour.
Final judgement in the case was entered on October 20,
giving both parties 60 days under federal law to file an appeal. The
government’s filing came two days before the deadline.
The White House had pledged to challenge the ruling shortly
after it was delivered. “We will immediately move to appeal this egregious
decision, and we are confident we will ultimately prevail in our efforts to
hold Harvard accountable,” White House spokesperson Liz Huston said in a
statement at the time.
In her September ruling, Burroughs concluded that the Trump
administration’s decision to freeze Harvard’s funding violated the
Constitution, finding that the move amounted to retaliation for protected
speech. She ruled that allegations of antisemitism were used as a pretext for
what she described as an “ideologically-motivated assault” on universities and
said the administration failed to follow procedures required under Title VI of
the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
Harvard filed the lawsuit in April after billions of dollars
in research funding were cut. The university argued that the freeze was an
attempt to punish it for refusing to comply with federal demands, including
requests that the government be given oversight over faculty hiring, admissions
policies, and internal governance.
Following the ruling, some funding began to flow back to the
university. In late September, Harvard researchers received about 46 million
dollars in federal grants, covering roughly 200 projects and marking the first
release of funds in four months.
Several legal experts have said the administration faces a
difficult challenge at the First Circuit given the strength of the September
decision. Former Department of Health and Human Services general counsel Samuel
R. Bagenstos said he doubted the ruling would be overturned.
“This is a really careful and well-reasoned opinion, and I
don't think the Court of Appeals will be persuaded that she got it wrong,” he
said.
If the First Circuit rules against the government, the
administration’s final option would be an appeal to the Supreme Court, where
its arguments may receive a more favourable hearing from the court’s
conservative majority.
The appeal filing did not outline the administration’s legal
arguments. Once the case is formally docketed, both sides will be allowed to
submit detailed briefs. There is no deadline for the First Circuit to issue a
ruling, though the court is expected to set a briefing schedule in the coming
weeks.
Meanwhile, federal officials and Harvard are reported to be
in discussions over a possible settlement that could involve a payment of up to
500 million dollars in exchange for the restoration of funding and the
resolution of ongoing investigations. No agreement has yet been finalised.
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