Authors Guild vs. National Endowment for the Humanities, DOGE Humanities Grant Cuts Ruled Unconstitutional

The Authors Guild vs. the National Endowment for the Humanities is a federal civil lawsuit in which the plaintiffs challenged the Trump administration’s mass elimination of congressionally approved humanities grants, arguing the cancellations were unlawful and unconstitutional. On May 7, 2026, a federal judge ruled the grant terminations violated the First Amendment and the Administrative Procedure Act. The court permanently barred the government from terminating the affected grants. An appeal has not been confirmed as of May 9, 2026.

Quick Facts

Field	Detail
Plaintiffs	The Authors Guild, American Council of Learned Societies, American Historical Association, Modern Language Association of America, and individual NEH grantees
Defendants	National Endowment for the Humanities, U.S. DOGE Service, and related officials including former Acting NEH Chairman Michael McDonald
Case Name & Number	The Authors Guild v. National Endowment for the Humanities, No. 1:25-cv-03923 (S.D.N.Y.)
Court	U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Manhattan
Date Filed	May 2025
Legal Claims	First Amendment (viewpoint discrimination); Fifth Amendment equal protection; Administrative Procedure Act (APA) violation
Grants at Stake	Over 1,400 grants totaling more than $100,000,000 in congressionally appropriated funds
Ruling	Plaintiffs win — grant terminations unconstitutional; government permanently barred from terminating the grants
Ruling Date	May 7, 2026
Judge	U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon, Southern District of New York
Plaintiff Attorneys	Fairmark Partners (Authors Guild); Yinka Ezekiel Onayemi (Nilan Johnson Lewis PA)
Defense Attorneys	U.S. Department of Justice
Appeal Status	TBD — White House and DOJ did not respond to comment requests; no appeal confirmed as of May 9, 2026
Last Updated	May 9, 2026

Case Timeline

Date	Event
January 20, 2025	Trump signs executive order “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing”
February 2025	Trump signs second executive order implementing DOGE’s cost efficiency initiative
April 2025	DOGE cancels over 1,400 NEH grants; Acting Chairman McDonald sends termination letters to grantees
May 2025	Authors Guild and co-plaintiffs file lawsuit in U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
July 25, 2025	Judge McMahon grants preliminary injunction, blocking grant terminations while case proceeds
August 1, 2025	Court issues formal preliminary injunction order
December 18, 2025	Court orders defendants to produce internal DOGE data after finding administrative record incomplete
January 2026	Government produces approximately 3,700 documents; court compels production of 96 withheld documents
March 6, 2026	Plaintiffs file summary judgment motion
May 7, 2026	Judge McMahon issues 143-page ruling — plaintiffs win on all major claims; government permanently barred from terminating grants

DOGE, NEH, and $100 Million in Erased Grants

In April 2025, DOGE terminated thousands of grants previously approved by Congress from the National Endowment for the Humanities, affecting the American Council of Learned Societies, the American Historical Association, and the Modern Language Association of America, among many others. The NEH is a federal agency established by Congress in 1965 to fund research, education, and public programs in history, literature, philosophy, and related fields. Congress appropriates its budget directly — meaning the money DOGE cut had already been authorized and allocated through the legislative branch.

The grant cancellations were announced three months after Trump issued an executive order titled “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing,” and followed a February 2025 order implementing DOGE’s cost efficiency initiative. Acting NEH Chairman Michael McDonald sent letters to grant recipients stating the NEH was “repurposing its funding allocations in a new direction in furtherance of the President’s agenda.” The groups sued in May 2025, arguing the executive branch cannot override congressional spending decisions based on the president’s policy preferences. For a detailed breakdown of how DOGE’s process worked before this ruling, read DOGE Used ChatGPT to Kill NEH Grants — What the Lawsuit Reveals on AllAboutLawyer.com.

Who Filed the Lawsuit and Who They Are Suing

The Authors Guild is the largest professional organization for published writers in the United States, representing tens of thousands of authors. It was joined by the American Council of Learned Societies, a federation of 75 scholarly organizations, the American Historical Association, the nation’s oldest and largest society of professional historians, and the Modern Language Association, which represents scholars of literature and languages. Individual NEH grantees — researchers and writers who had active grants canceled mid-project — also joined the suit.

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The defendants are the National Endowment for the Humanities and the U.S. DOGE Service, along with its personnel who directed the cuts. Evidence obtained through discovery showed that DOGE personnel played an integral role in identifying grants for cancellation and shaping the termination process — and that former Acting Chairman McDonald’s sworn statements confirmed DOGE’s direct involvement in executing the cuts. The Department of Justice defended the administration in court, arguing the cuts were lawful exercises of executive authority to implement the president’s agenda. The court rejected that argument entirely.

The constitutional stakes here go beyond this one agency. The same legal theory — that the government cannot withdraw congressionally appropriated funding as punishment for disfavored speech — is at the center of multiple active federal lawsuits against the current administration. For a parallel case involving federal health grants, see American Academy of Pediatrics Lawsuit — Federal Court Orders HHS to Restore $12M After Alleged First Amendment Retaliation on AllAboutLawyer.com.

The May 7, 2026 Ruling — What the Judge Decided

U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon ruled on May 7, 2026 that DOGE selected grants for termination in ways that violated the First Amendment and the equal-protection component of the Fifth Amendment, calling the case “a textbook example of unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination.” The ruling runs 143 pages.

The First Amendment prohibits the government from penalizing speech based on the viewpoint it expresses — including through the selective withdrawal of funding. Viewpoint discrimination means targeting grants not because of content policy, but because the government disfavors the perspective being expressed. The Fifth Amendment’s equal protection component bars the federal government from treating people or groups differently based on race, religion, or national origin. DOGE’s use of an AI tool to flag grants for DEI content — without a defined standard — produced results the court found constitutionally impermissible.

Judge McMahon noted that DOGE used ChatGPT to decide which grants would promote diversity, equity, and inclusion, but did not tell the AI chatbot how it defined the term. In one case flagged by the court, officials using the AI platform labeled as DEI an anthology titled “In the Shadow of the Holocaust: Short Fiction by Jewish Writers from the Soviet Union.” The judge also rejected the government’s argument that there was no constitutional problem because the viewpoint classification was ChatGPT’s doing rather than the government’s.

“DOGE had no statutory authority to terminate NEH grants,” McMahon wrote. “And on the undisputed evidence, DOGE — not the NEH Chairperson or anyone else at NEH — effectuated the terminations at issue here.” The court permanently barred the administration from terminating the grants and ordered the government to rescind its termination letters to grantees. However, the order does not require the government to immediately pay out grant funds — only the Court of Federal Claims holds that authority.

What This Ruling Means for Grantees and What Comes Next

The Authors Guild CEO Mary Rasenberger called the decision a “complete victory” and stated the organization would be watching closely to make sure every one of the grants is restored. The American Historical Association’s executive director called the ruling an achievement in restoring the NEH’s ability to fulfill the mission Congress assigned it.

The government must now rescind the termination letters it sent to over 1,400 grant recipients. That does not automatically mean funds flow immediately — grantees may need to pursue payment through separate proceedings if the administration does not voluntarily restore the funds. It was not immediately clear whether an appeal was planned. The White House and Department of Justice did not return requests for comment following the ruling.

If the government appeals to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, the permanent injunction entered by Judge McMahon would remain in effect during that process unless a higher court specifically stays it. The administration would need to demonstrate a strong likelihood of success on appeal to obtain such a stay — a high bar given the scope of the constitutional findings in the 143-page ruling.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who filed the DOGE humanities grant lawsuit? 

The Authors Guild, the American Council of Learned Societies, the American Historical Association, the Modern Language Association of America, and individual NEH grantees filed the lawsuit in May 2025 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

What court handled this case and who was the judge?

 The case was heard in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan, assigned to U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon, Case No. 1:25-cv-03923.

How did DOGE decide which grants to cut?

 According to depositions of two DOGE members who directed the grant cuts, DOGE used ChatGPT to identify which grants promoted diversity, equity, and inclusion — but did not tell the AI how it defined the term before using its results to cancel over 1,400 grants.

How much money was involved?

 The canceled grants totaled more than $100 million in congressionally appropriated funds that had already been authorized and allocated to grantees before DOGE terminated them.

What did the judge rule? 

Judge McMahon permanently barred the administration from terminating the grants, ruling that DOGE had no authority to cancel NEH grants and that the cancellations violated the First Amendment and the Fifth Amendment’s equal protection guarantee.

Does the ruling mean grantees get paid right away?

 Not automatically. The judge ordered the government to rescind termination letters but stated the order does not require the government to immediately pay grant funds, as only the Court of Federal Claims holds authority to compel payment of federal funds.

Can I read the court documents?

 Yes. Case No. 1:25-cv-03923 is publicly available through PACER and CourtListener.

Is the government appealing? 

As of May 7, 2026, it was not immediately clear if an appeal was planned. The White House and DOJ did not return requests for comment following the ruling. This article will be updated when that status is confirmed.

Sources

• Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse — Authors Guild v. NEH, Case No. 1:25-cv-03923
• CourtListener Docket — The Authors Guild v. National Endowment for the Humanities

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Information is based on publicly available court records and verified reporting. For advice about a specific legal situation, consult a qualified attorney.

Prepared by the AllAboutLawyer.com Editorial Team and reviewed for factual accuracy against official court records and verified public sources on May 9, 2026. Last Updated: May 9, 2026.