The U.S. House of Representatives is investigating Northwestern University’s legal clinic over its decision to represent protestors accused of engaging in “illegal, antisemitic conduct.” This marks what appears to be the first Congressional investigation of a U.S. law school’s legal clinic for offering such representation.
The Committee on Education and the Workforce sent a letter to Northwestern University on Thursday, requesting details on the law school’s clinic budgets, policies, and other related information. The investigation focuses on the Community Justice and Civil Rights Clinic, which represented the organizers of an April 2024 pro-Palestine protest at Chicago’s O’Hare airport. The protest blocked traffic, resulting in 40 arrests.
A committee spokesperson confirmed that this was the first time the committee had investigated a law school clinic. They are specifically seeking more information about the clinic’s operations, including detailed payment and personnel data.
The letter from committee chair Tim Walberg, a Republican from Michigan, expressed concerns over the university’s actions. It questioned why Northwestern, a university that receives billions in federal funds, would allocate resources to support actions described as illegal and antisemitic.
In response, Northwestern University clarified that its legal clinic’s cases do not necessarily reflect the university’s views. The clinic represents a range of cases, including those involving political and legal issues from across the spectrum. The clinic is also currently representing January 6 protestors.
The Clinical Legal Education Association and the clinic section of the Association of American Law Schools issued a joint statement calling the committee’s request “unprecedented” and an attempt to intimidate the university’s academic freedom.
This investigation adds to the Republican-led committee’s broader probe into antisemitism at universities following the October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. The committee has previously investigated other major universities, including Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania, and recently included Northwestern University on the list.
While the committee has oversight over higher education, it does not directly control federal funding to individual schools. However, the Trump administration has used executive orders to withhold federal grants from universities not aligned with its stance. A prominent case was Columbia University’s loss of $400 million in federal grants after a joint investigation into campus antisemitism.
The committee also sent letters to other colleges, including Barnard College and Pomona College, asking for information on their responses to rising antisemitism on campuses.
This investigation into Northwestern’s legal clinics comes amid a broader effort by the Trump administration to challenge universities that it believes are not following its policies, particularly in terms of legal representation and campus activities.
The committee’s letter requests a wide range of information, including all written policies and procedures related to the clinic’s operations, its budget, employee information, and performance reviews for the clinic’s director, Sheila Bedi.
Legal experts, like Robert Kuehn, a professor at Washington University in St. Louis, expressed concerns that the investigation could lead to self-censorship among law school clinics. He noted that clinics, which often represent marginalized or unpopular groups, might avoid certain clients due to fear of political backlash.
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