A federal judge in Philadelphia heard arguments on Tuesday over whether to enforce a subpoena requiring the University of Pennsylvania to provide information about employees affiliated with Jewish campus organizations as part of a federal investigation into alleged antisemitism.
The case, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. The Trustees of The University of Pennsylvania, stems from a probe by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission into whether the university permitted a hostile work environment for Jewish faculty and staff.
The investigation began after Andrea Lucas, a commissioner for the EEOC, filed a discrimination charge on Dec. 8, 2023, alleging that the university engaged in a “pattern or practice of harassment” against Jewish employees.
In a Feb. 3 memorandum, Gerald J. Pappert, a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania who is overseeing the case, wrote that the EEOC seeks to enforce an administrative subpoena served on the university’s governing body, The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania, as part of its investigation into potential unlawful employment practices.
The EEOC issued the subpoena on July 23, requesting records related to complaints of discrimination “based on Jewish religion, faith, ancestry/national origin and/or complaints of antisemitism” dating back to Nov. 1, 2022. The agency also sought information about Jewish campus organizations, including membership rosters and members’ last known contact information.
The university declined to produce some of the requested information, prompting the EEOC to file a lawsuit in November seeking to compel compliance.
Penn has said it has cooperated extensively with the investigation and turned over roughly 900 pages of documents, but argues the remaining request would force the university to compile lists identifying employees by their Jewish faith or affiliations, along with personal contact information.
Several Jewish-affiliated and faculty organizations moved to intervene in the case, including the American Academy of Jewish Research, the Jewish Law Students Association at Penn Carey Law, the American Association of University Professors and its Penn chapter and the Penn Association of Senior and Emeritus Faculty.
The ACLU of Pennsylvania filed a motion on behalf of the groups.
Pappert ruled earlier that the organizations have a sufficient legal interest to participate because the subpoena seeks information about their members’ affiliations with Jewish campus groups.
The intervening groups argue that disclosing membership lists could violate the First Amendment rights of association and religious freedom. In court filings, the ACLU said the EEOC could use “myriad alternative, less intrusive methods” to invite employees to report discrimination voluntarily.
During the March 10 hearing, EEOC attorney Debra Lawrence, an attorney for the EEOC, argued that the agency’s request follows standard investigative procedures, according to The Daily Pennsylvanian, a student publication.
Norm Eisen, an attorney representing some of the intervening groups and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, stated that the government’s demand would effectively create lists identifying Jewish individuals on campus.
“Free expression and religious liberty—the most basic rights—cannot be trampled this way,” Eisen said.
A university spokesperson told the student paper that Penn is awaiting the court’s decision. Pappert did not indicate when he might rule.
