On September 17, 2026, Judge Angel Kelley of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued a 70-page summary judgment ruling against the Education Department's anti-DEI grant conditions, in State of California v. U.S. Department of Education. The ruling voided the cancellation of 109 grants.
The case concerned teacher-preparation and related grant programs the department cut on the ground that they involved diversity, equity and inclusion. The court found the department's approach arbitrary.
One correction to how this has circulated: the ruling does not hand back $600 million. Recovery of money already withheld runs through the Court of Federal Claims, not this case.