FASORP, short for Faculty, Alumni, and Students Opposed to Racial Preferences, is not walking away quietly. The group has asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit to overturn a federal judge’s recent dismissal of its lawsuit accusing Northwestern University’s Pritzker School of Law of discriminating against white, male faculty candidates. The appeal puts front and center how elite law schools factor race and gender into hiring and could ripple across campus hiring practices more broadly.
FASORP Files Notice Of Appeal
The group filed its notice of appeal with the Seventh Circuit on Feb. 14, one day after a federal judge terminated the case at the district court level, according to The Daily Northwestern. The complaint now on appeal is FASORP’s second lawsuit against Northwestern, following an earlier case that the group voluntarily dismissed in January 2025.
How The District Court Ruled
U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis granted Northwestern’s motion to dismiss in late January, finding that the complaint did not show the kind of concrete, particularized injury needed for Article III standing, according to Reuters. In court filings, Northwestern argued that the plaintiffs were relying on speculation and that several of the individuals named in the lawsuit had not even applied for the faculty positions they claimed they were denied.
Case Record And Timeline
The dispute dates back to a July 2, 2024, filing (docket no. 1:24 ), which kicked off a procedural trail of amended complaints, motions to dismiss, and a voluntary dismissal before FASORP brought the more recent version of the case, according to records compiled by the Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse. The public docket also identifies the attorneys who have appeared for both FASORP and Northwestern throughout the litigation.
What FASORP Alleges
In its complaint, FASORP claims that Northwestern’s Pritzker School of Law gave preference to women and racial minorities ahead of white male candidates and that the law school hired some less-qualified faculty based on race and sex, according to reporting by The Daily Northwestern. The plaintiffs are represented by attorney Jonathan F. Mitchell and allied counsel, including the America First Legal Foundation, as reflected in reporting and court filings.
Legal Stakes And Precedent
Legal analysts note that similar challenges have routinely run into trouble on standing and proof-of-harm requirements, and FASORP’s earlier efforts, along with recent suits targeting law reviews and other university programs, have generally fallen short in federal court, TaxProf's Legal Ed News reports. Those outcomes highlight how difficult it is for plaintiffs to persuade courts to scrutinize broad university hiring practices instead of resolving specific, individual hiring disputes.
What Comes Next
The Seventh Circuit will now determine whether any part of FASORP’s case can move forward, a process that can take months and often turns on technical procedural issues rather than sweeping constitutional questions. Northwestern has previously stated that it "intends to vigorously defend" the law school. The university did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the latest appeal, according to earlier coverage by Good Morning America.
