In a strong rebuke to the Trump administration, US District Judge Allison Burroughs stepped in to stop an order that would have stripped Harvard University of its ability to enroll international students .
The ruling has drawn national attention not just for the case’s implications, but for the judge behind it.
Burroughs was appointed by former US President Barack Obama in 2014 and currently serves at the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Her courtroom is located at the John Joseph Moakley US Courthouse in Boston. Before taking the bench, she worked as a partner at the law firm Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP and earlier served as an assistant US attorney in both Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.
Burroughs graduated cum laude from Middlebury College in 1983 and earned her law degree, also cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1988. She began her legal career clerking for Judge Norma Shapiro in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Harvard ruling
In her recent order issued on Friday, Burroughs temporarily blocked Homeland Security’s decision to revoke Harvard’s participation in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program . The Department had ordered the university to stop enrolling international students, alleging noncompliance with reporting rules.
Harvard quickly sued, calling the move a “blatant violation” of the First Amendment , the Due Process Clause , and the Administrative Procedures Act. Burroughs sided with the university, saying the administration’s action would cause “immediate and irreparable injury” to Harvard’s campus.
“This action should not surprise you and is the unfortunate result of Harvard's failure to comply with simple reporting requirements,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote in a letter to Harvard on 22 May, accusing the school of noncompliance dating back to an earlier demand for detailed information on every international student.
Noem’s demand included disciplinary records from the past five years, which Harvard’s lawyers described as “unprecedented” and beyond the scope of federal regulations.
In its complaint, Harvard stressed the importance of its nearly 7,000 international students, who make up about a quarter of its student body. “Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard,” the university argued.
Judge Burroughs’ ruling means the ban is paused for now, while the court considers whether to issue a longer-term injunction. A hearing is scheduled for May 29.
The ruling has drawn national attention not just for the case’s implications, but for the judge behind it.
Burroughs was appointed by former US President Barack Obama in 2014 and currently serves at the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Her courtroom is located at the John Joseph Moakley US Courthouse in Boston. Before taking the bench, she worked as a partner at the law firm Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP and earlier served as an assistant US attorney in both Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.
Burroughs graduated cum laude from Middlebury College in 1983 and earned her law degree, also cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1988. She began her legal career clerking for Judge Norma Shapiro in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Harvard ruling
In her recent order issued on Friday, Burroughs temporarily blocked Homeland Security’s decision to revoke Harvard’s participation in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program . The Department had ordered the university to stop enrolling international students, alleging noncompliance with reporting rules.
Harvard quickly sued, calling the move a “blatant violation” of the First Amendment , the Due Process Clause , and the Administrative Procedures Act. Burroughs sided with the university, saying the administration’s action would cause “immediate and irreparable injury” to Harvard’s campus.
“This action should not surprise you and is the unfortunate result of Harvard's failure to comply with simple reporting requirements,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote in a letter to Harvard on 22 May, accusing the school of noncompliance dating back to an earlier demand for detailed information on every international student.
Noem’s demand included disciplinary records from the past five years, which Harvard’s lawyers described as “unprecedented” and beyond the scope of federal regulations.
In its complaint, Harvard stressed the importance of its nearly 7,000 international students, who make up about a quarter of its student body. “Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard,” the university argued.
Judge Burroughs’ ruling means the ban is paused for now, while the court considers whether to issue a longer-term injunction. A hearing is scheduled for May 29.
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