By Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON, Sept 8 (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice and Education Departments alleged on Wednesday that admissions practices at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law deliberately favored Black applicants and discriminated against white and Asian candidates.
A joint probe by the two federal departments whose findings were announced on Wednesday marked the latest crackdown on diversity initiatives in universities by President Donald Trump’s administration.
The administration alleged the UC Berkeley School of Law uses “race, essay prompts, and other tactics to further its admissions diversity goals.”
Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law, said on Wednesday that the school’s “admissions policy is clear that race is not considered in any way in admissions decisions.”
UC Berkeley’s central administration said the university “will spare no effort to provide ample evidence” to show the university complies with all relevant laws, policies and rules governing admissions.
Trump, who casts diversity goals as anti-merit and discriminatory against white people and men, has signed orders to dismantle them. Rights advocates say diversity practices address historic inequities for marginalized groups like ethnic minorities, the LGBT community and women.
The U.S. Supreme Court rejected affirmative action at colleges in 2023 when it struck down race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard and the University of North Carolina.
“The data produced by Berkeley Law demonstrates a strong bias against Asian and white applicants, with a corresponding bias in favor of Black applicants,” the Trump administration said, adding Black applicants had 5.8 times higher odds of admission than comparable white applicants in 2025.
The law school’s October 2025 enrollment data showed 1,128 law students, of whom 516 were white and 293 Asian, with 51 Black students.
The Department of Justice said it sought a voluntary resolution agreement with the school.
Trump has targeted universities with probes and funding suspension threats over pro-Palestinian protests against U.S. ally Israel’s assault on Gaza, diversity initiatives, transgender policies and climate programs, leading to free speech, due process and academic freedom concerns.
His administration has also targeted various other schools over admissions practices.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
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