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Dear Colleagues, 

I am writing to follow up on my July 2 message on FASORP v. Northwestern, which alleges among its claims racial and gender preferences in faculty hiring practices at the Law School. Over the last several days, we have been working closely with the University as we prepare to vigorously defend against this lawsuit. We have full confidence in these legal efforts. 

We are proud of our exceptional faculty, students, staff, and alumni, including the tremendous faculty we have hired over the last several years. Our faculty’s innovative research and the scholarship produced by our student-led law reviews address critical societal challenges, redefine fields of law, and interweave disciplines in novel ways. Our faculty are committed teachers and mentors who help prepare our students to lead at this time of change, and our students and alumni make an extraordinary difference through their work. 

I condemn, as we all should, the complaint’s disparagement of outstanding Black, Latinx, Asian, female, and LGBTQI+ faculty and its racial targeting of our Black faculty members. The complaint, which is baseless and riddled with inaccuracies, engages in the very practices it purports to condemn as it attacks our faculty, students, and leadership. It treats people unequally based on their identity in the way it reports upon their qualifications and records, and it violates the norms of professionalism that we teach our students. 

Those who brought this lawsuit on the anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 have made clear publicly that they intend it to be part of a broader political attack on higher education and its commitment to diversity. As we defend against this lawsuit, we remain committed to our values and we will move forward with the important work of our Law School. 

Sincerely,
Hari Osofsky

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