The UC Board of Regents asked a judge Monday to dismiss a Department of Justice lawsuit accusing UCLA of allowing discrimination against Israeli and Jewish employees. 

The lawsuit, filed in February, alleged that UCLA allowed antisemitic protests on its campus following Palestinian political party and militant group Hamas’ attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 people. The DOJ claimed in the lawsuit that the spring 2024 Palestine solidarity encampment at UCLA – which protesters organized to demand the UC divest from companies with ties to the Israeli military – featured antisemitic chants and posters and excluded Jewish people. 

[Related: DOJ files lawsuit against UC for allegedly allowing antisemitic work environment]

The UC acknowledged in the motion that some employees were exposed to antisemitism on UCLA’s campus following the protests but asked the judge to dismiss the suit, citing the university’s efforts to address discrimination against Israeli and Jewish students and faculty. 

“The Complaints describe incidents perpetrated by third parties that are incompatible with the values that bind the University community together,” said Adam Karr, the Regents’ attorney, in the motion to dismiss the lawsuit. “UCLA has responded—and will continue to respond— to antisemitism, regardless of the outcome of this lawsuit.”

The DOJ launched an investigation into the UC in March 2025 over the University’s alleged antisemitic treatment of employees, which the department said violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The act protects employees from discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex or religion.

[Related: Department of Justice opens investigation into antisemitism allegations at UC]

The Israeli military has killed 74,000 Palestinians since it launched its offensive in Gaza in October 2023 following Hamas’ attacks, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Organizers of the encampment have denied that the encampment was antisemitic, citing that it included Jewish people and celebrated Jewish holidays.

UCLA Media Relations and the UC Office of the President did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the University’s motion.

During the encampment, pro-Israel counter-protesters established a rally opposite the encampment with UCLA’s permission, Karr said in the motion. He added that many protesters on both sides were unaffiliated with the University.

The UC cited UCLA’s efforts to strengthen its Time, Place and Manner policies to prohibit unauthorized encampments and concealing one’s identity while protesting as grounds to dismiss the suit. The encampment – which UCLA declared unlawful in April 2024 – was swept by police a week after it was erected, resulting in more than 200 arrests May 2, 2024. 

The federal government has accused the university of creating an antisemitic environment on multiple occasions. The DOJ filed a separate lawsuit against the UC in May alleging that UCLA allowed discrimination against Israeli and Jewish students. 

UCLA asked a judge to dismiss the May suit in September, claiming that the federal government unfairly used civil rights laws to control universities.

[Related: UCLA asks judge to dismiss DOJ case alleging the university allowed antisemitism]

The Trump administration froze $584 million in UCLA’s federal research funding in July 2025, alleging that the university allowed antisemitism, affirmative action and “men to participate in women’s sports.” Chancellor Julio Frenk denied these allegations in a January interview with the Daily Bruin.

The complaints list additional protests, including several allegedly organized by members of Students for Justice in Palestine at UCLA, a group involved in the 2024 encampment. However, the motion states that UCLA has worked to regulate these events. 

“The Complaints do not allege that any of these events resulted in sustained disruption to university operations or a renewed encampment,” Karr said in the motion. “In short, UCLA has effectively managed protest events for more than two years.”

The motion also states that UCLA houses several institutions to support Jewish and Israeli students and faculty, including the Alan D. Leve Center for Jewish Studies, a research center for Jewish culture, the UCLA Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for Israel Studies, which supports research related to Israel, and Hillel at UCLA. 

“An array of University-supported programmatic initiatives complement the University’s civil rights infrastructure, which is charged with enforcing the new systemwide A-D (anti-discrimination) Policy,” Karr said in the motion. “The University has dedicated significant resources to enhancing its capacity to respond to individual complaints of discrimination and harassment.”