Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College et al

Filing 325

Judge Allison D. Burroughs: ORDER entered. MEMORANDUM AND ORDER. "...Accordingly, Harvards motion for partial judgment on the pleadings as to Count IV and VI [ECF No. 185] is GRANTED. SO ORDERED."(Folan, Karen)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS
STUDENTS FOR FAIR ADMISSIONS,
INC.
Plaintiff,
v.
PRESIDENT AND FELLOWS OF
HARVARD COLLEGE (HARVARD
CORPORATION),
Defendant.

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Civil Action No. 14-cv-14176-ADB

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
GRANTING MOTION FOR PARTIAL JUDGMENT ON THE PLEADINGS
BURROUGHS, D.J.
On September 23, 2016, Harvard moved for partial judgment on the pleadings on Counts
IV and VI pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(c) and 12(h)(2). [ECF Nos. 185, 186]. SFFA opposed
the motion on October 21, 2016 [ECF Nos. 202, 203], and Harvard filed its reply brief on
November 4, 2016 [ECF NO. 218]. The intervenors also filed a memorandum in support of
Harvard’s motion on October 19, 2016. [ECF No. 199].
For the reasons set forth below and more fully articulated by Harvard and the intervenors
in their briefs, the Court grants the motion. The First Circuit recognizes, at least implicitly, the
permissibility of partial judgments under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12. See, e.g., Najas Realty, LLC v.
Seekonk Water Dist., 821 F.3d 134, 146 (1st Cir. 2016) (affirming district court’s grant of
motion for partial judgment on pleadings pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(c)). Further, SFFA
acknowledges that ruling on Count VI would require this Court to overrule Supreme Court
precedent, something it decidedly cannot do, and the Court does not find persuasive SFFA’s

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rationale that it should wait to enter judgment on the Count VI until the close of discovery
simply because discovery will not be impacted one way or another. Finally, Count IV presumes a
legal requirement for race-conscious admissions—that Harvard may only consider race for the
“last few places left”—that the case law does not support.
Accordingly, Harvard’s motion for partial judgment on the pleadings as to Count IV and
VI [ECF No. 185] is GRANTED.
SO ORDERED.
Dated: June 2, 2017

/s/ Allison D. Burroughs
ALLISON D. BURROUGHS
U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE

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