A US judge has ruled that the Trump administration’s decision to suspend funding for the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) was unlawful and ordered its restoration. The funding suspension, which froze $584m in grants, had been a response to student protests against Israel’s military assault on Gaza.
The ruling, made by Judge Rita Lin, found that the administration’s actions violated an earlier preliminary injunction she had issued in June, which had prevented the National Science Foundation from cancelling grants at UCLA. The White House and the university have yet to comment on the ruling.
UCLA had agreed to pay $1bn as part of a settlement offer made by the Trump administration, but the university claimed that such a large payment would be “devastating”. Rights advocates have raised concerns over free speech and academic freedom in light of the president’s threats.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/13/trump-ucla-frozen-funds