Judge Rules for Harvard in Suit Alleging Wrongful Denial of Undergrad Degree After Sexual Assault Findings

A federal judge on Tuesday threw out a 2019 lawsuit against Harvard filed by former undergraduate student Damilare Sonoiki, who alleged that the College unfairly denied him his degree after he was accused of sexual assault by three fellow students.

The court’s decision, which allowed Harvard’s motion for summary judgment, comes after a federal appeals court reversed a lower court’s June 2020 dismissal of the suit’s first count, which claimed Harvard violated the contract that governs relationships between students and the University.

The reversal, which happened two years later in June 2022, sent the case back to a lower court for further proceedings.

District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin wrote in a court opinion that the arguments in support of the Sonoiki's breach of contract claim “failed to provide evidence supporting a finding that he was harmed by any procedural errors committed by Harvard.”

Sonoiki was set to graduate from the College in May 2013, but two days before Commencement — Harvard’s graduation ceremony — two women filed formal sexual misconduct complaints against him. Several days later, a third woman accused Sonoiki in a complaint.

In November 2013, the Harvard College Administrative Board — after finding Sonoiki responsible for accusations of sexual assault from three fellow students — required him to withdraw from the College and recommended his dismissal to the Faculty Council. In December 2013, the Council dismissed Sonoiki.

Sonoiki, who never received his undergraduate degree, sued Harvard on Oct. 21, 2019, alleging that the Ad Board failed to inform him that communications between him and his Ad Board representative — former Currier House Resident Dean Laura K. Johnson — would not be kept confidential.

The Ad Board no longer investigates allegations of student sexual misconduct but still handles disciplinary cases.

The Office for Dispute Resolution, founded in 2014, is now responsible for investigating cases related to sexual misconduct involving Harvard affiliates.

In the 2022 ruling reviving the suit, Judge O. Rogeriee Thompson wrote that Sonoiki’s allegations state a “plausible breach of contract claim” on the basis that he “reasonably expected his Board Rep to respect some confidences.”

Sorokin wrote in his ruling that while “a reasonable student could expect his Board Representative to keep their discussions, or at least some portion of them, confidential,” Sonoiki failed to identify any confidential information disclosed by Johnson.

Sorokin wrote in his judgment throwing out the lawsuit that “each party shall bear its own fees and costs” for the legal proceedings.

University spokesperson Jason A. Newton declined to comment on the court ruling.

Susan C. Stone, an attorney for Sonoiki, said in an interview with The Crimson Tuesday afternoon that they “were obviously quite disappointed to read the opinion.”

“We’re weighing our options,” Stone added.

—Staff writer Michelle N. Amponsah can be reached at michelle.amponsah@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X at @mnamponsah.

—Staff writer Joyce E. Kim can be reached at joyce.kim@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X at @joycekim324.