JUSTICE DEPARTMENT FINDS UCLA LAW DISCRIMINATED AGAINST WHITE AND ASIAN APPLICANTS IN ADMISSIONS

The U.S. Department of Justice announced Thursday that its Civil Rights Division found the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law discriminated against white and Asian applicants in admissions decisions involving its 2023, 2024 and 2025 incoming classes.

According to the Justice Department, UCLA Law’s admissions practices violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race or color by recipients of federal financial assistance. The Department also cited the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which restricted the use of race in college admissions.

The findings resulted from a federal compliance investigation into UCLA Law’s admissions practices. The Department opened the investigation in April 2025 and later issued supplemental requests for information in February 2026.

Investigators reviewed documents produced by UCLA Law, internal communications, admissions materials and applicant-level data collected during the inquiry.

The Justice Department said its investigation focused in part on UCLA Law’s admissions practices following the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling.

According to the findings, UCLA Law continued using personal statements, essay prompts and other application materials in ways the Department concluded allowed admissions personnel to identify an applicant’s racial background.

Federal investigators also examined UCLA Law’s annual Diversity Admissions Open House and communications from admissions officials concerning how prospective students could discuss race and personal background in their applications.

The Department concluded that UCLA Law used what it characterized as racial proxies within its holistic admissions process.

The findings letter also cites internal communications and statements from university officials concerning diversity goals following the Supreme Court ruling.

According to the Department, UCLA Law officials stated that the Supreme Court decision would not change the school’s admissions practices. Investigators also cited statements concerning the racial composition of incoming classes and the school’s commitment to maintaining diversity through holistic review.

The Justice Department examined seven years of applicant-level admissions data covering 2019 through 2025.

According to the Department’s statistical analysis, race continued to have a significant effect on an applicant’s chances of admission after the Supreme Court ruling.

For the 2025 incoming class, the Department reported that black applicants had approximately seven times the odds of admission compared with otherwise equivalent white applicants.

Hispanic applicants had approximately twice the odds of admission compared with otherwise equivalent white applicants, according to the Department’s analysis.

The investigation also examined LSAT scores among admitted students.

For the 2025 class, the median LSAT score among admitted white applicants was 172, compared with 168 among admitted black applicants.

The Justice Department reported that between 2019 and 2024, the median LSAT scores of admitted black applicants were between five and seven points lower than the median scores of admitted white applicants.

For 2024 and 2025 combined, the Department found that half of admitted black applicants had LSAT scores at or below the scores of 90 percent of admitted white applicants.

The Department also concluded that white and Asian applicants with LSAT scores comparable to admitted black and Hispanic applicants were denied admission.

Federal investigators cited the admissions data, internal communications and admissions materials as part of the basis for concluding that UCLA Law intentionally discriminated based on race.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said federal law prohibits admissions standards from shifting based on an applicant’s race.

“The use of race as a thumb on the scale that helps or disadvantages any student is illegal,” Dhillon said.

The Department also identified federal financial assistance received by UCLA as part of its Title VI jurisdiction.

According to the findings letter, UCLA participates in federally funded programs administered through Justice Department components. The active grants identified in the investigation totaled approximately $1.99 million.

The Justice Department’s determination is an administrative finding arising from its investigation and is not a final court judgment.

The Department said it will seek a voluntary resolution agreement with the University of California aimed at bringing UCLA Law’s admissions practices into compliance with federal law.

If voluntary compliance cannot be reached, the Justice Department said it may pursue judicial enforcement.

The Department concluded that UCLA Law discriminated against white and Asian applicants during the 2023, 2024 and 2025 admissions cycles and stated that, based on the records and data it reviewed, the practices remained ongoing at the time of its findings.

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U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division — University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law – Title VI Findings, October 1, 2026. (Free Download)

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