Federal judge is 'inclined' to order Trump to restore $500 million in UCLA research grants

"A federal judge Thursday said she was "inclined to extend" an earlier ruling and order the Trump administration to restore an additional $500 million in UCLA medical research grants that were frozen in response to the university's alleged campus antisemitism violations. Although she did not issue a formal ruling late Thursday, U.S. District Judge Rita F. Lin indicated she is leaning toward reversing - for now - the vast majority of funding freezes that University of California leaders say have endangered the future."

"The judge's reasoning: The UCLA grants were suspended by form letters that were unspecific to the research, a likely violation of the Administrative Procedure Act, which regulates executive branch rulemaking. Though Lin said she had a "lot of homework to do" on the matter, she indicated that reversing the grant cuts was "likely where I will land" and she would issue an order "shortly.""

"Lin said the Trump administration had undertaken a "fundamental sin" in its "un-reasoned mass terminations" of the grants using "letters that don't go through the required factors that the agency is supposed to consider." The possible preliminary injunction would be in place as the case proceeds through the courts. But in saying she leaned toward broadening the case, Lin suggested she believed there would be irreparable harm if the suspensions were not immediately reversed."

A federal judge said she is inclined to extend an earlier ruling to order the Trump administration to restore an additional $500 million in UCLA medical research grants frozen over alleged campus antisemitism. The judge signaled she would likely reverse the majority of funding freezes that UC leaders say threaten the ten-campus, multi-hospital system. She indicated readiness to add UCLA NIH grant recipients to a class-action that already reversed tens of millions in grants from NSF, EPA, NEH and other agencies. The judge reasoned that blanket suspensions via unspecific form letters likely violate the Administrative Procedure Act and criticized the administration's mass terminations. A preliminary injunction could be entered to prevent irreparable harm while the case proceeds.

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