{
  "id": 268319,
  "title": "DOJ accuses Duke law school of favoring Black applicants over white and Asian ones",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/07/doj-accuses-duke-law-school-of-favoring-black-applicants-over-white",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-07T14:36:23.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Fortune",
    "slug": "fortune",
    "url": "https://fortune.com/2026/08/07/doj-duke-law-race-admissions-findings/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On Thursday, the Justice Department accused Duke University's law school of unlawfully favoring Black applicants over white and Asian ones in its admissions process. In a findings letter, the department alleged that administrators claimed to be race-neutral while using factors like personal essays and first-generation college status as proxies for race. Duke school officials stated they were reviewing the letter and committed to adhering to the law. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division emphasized that using \"diversity\" essay questions to favor certain races for admissions is still illegal discrimination based on race. The 2023 Supreme Court ruling made affirmative action in college admissions illegal, but the Trump administration accused colleges of using proxies to maintain racial diversity, which conservatives view as illegal discrimination. The department previously found that Yale University's medical school and UCLA's medical school unlawfully considered race in admissions and announced investigations into 15 other medical schools. In its findings against Duke Law, the DOJ cited that Black or Hispanic applicants were more likely to be admitted than white or Asian applicants with similar academic credentials. The median Law School Admissions Test scores of rejected white and Asian applicants also exceeded those of admitted Black applicants in 2024 and 2025. The department seeks to reach a settlement with Duke Law.",
  "summary": "The Justice Department has accused Duke University’s law school of unlawfully considering race in admissions, as part of the Trump administration's ongoing crackdown on higher education institutions. In a findings letter, the department alleged that while Duke administrators claimed to be race-neutral in admissions, they used factors such as personal essays and first-generation college status as proxies for race. The Durham, North Carolina-based institution said it was reviewing the letter and committed to following the law. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division stated that using 'diversity' essay questions to identify preferred races for admission is illegal discrimination based on race. The Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that affirmative action in college admissions is illegal, allowing colleges to consider applicants' backgrounds but not using race as a direct factor. The DOJ has previously found instances of illegal race-based admissions at Yale University and the University of California, Los Angeles, and is now investigating 15 other medical schools for similar practices. The department is seeking a settlement with Duke Law.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}