DOJ seeks to join lawsuit accusing UCLA’s medical school of illegally basing admissions on race

In a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the DOJ alleged that the David Geffen School of Medicine violated civil rights laws by considering race as a factor in its admissions process. Admissions data show large disparities between the academic preparation of minority applicants and non-minority applicants, the government alleged. It said the school’s policies violate the Supreme Court’s landmark 2023 ruling that effectively banned affirmative action or race-conscious systems. Affirmative action has been illegal in California since 1996.

“Even after the Supreme Court banned race-balancing, the Geffen School kept discriminating by using illegal DEI preferences in admissions,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.

“As the Supreme Court stated more than 80