UC Berkeley Law illegally used race in admissions, DOJ says

Key Points:

• The U.S. Department of Justice alleged that UC Berkeley’s law school illegally discriminated against white and Asian applicants by using race-conscious admissions practices for the 2024 and 2025 classes, violating federal law and California’s Proposition 209.
• The DOJ’s investigation found that Black applicants had significantly higher odds of admission compared to similarly qualified white applicants, and cited the use of essay prompts and racial identity questions as methods to weigh race in admissions after the Supreme Court banned race-based affirmative action.
• UC Berkeley and its law school denied the allegations, asserting compliance with all relevant laws and stating that admissions decisions are made based on merit without consideration of race, sex, or ethnicity.
• The Justice Department is seeking a voluntary agreement with UC Berkeley to resolve the issue and has threatened legal action if no agreement is reached, though it has not yet threatened to withdraw federal funding from the university.
• Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky and other officials maintain that diversity efforts do not involve racial preferences and that the school adheres strictly to Proposition 209 and federal laws prohibiting race-based admissions decisions.