UCLA accounting lecturer Gordon Klein’s $22 million lawsuit against the UC Regents and Dean Antonio Bernardo entered court on July 1, 2025, in Santa Monica Superior Court. Klein claims he was suspended and publicly smeared for refusing to give exam leniency solely to Black students, asserting the action damaged his career and emotional well-being.
Klein’s legal battle stems from a June 2, 2020 email in which a student asked him to adopt a “no-harm” grading policy tailored to Black students during the heightened racial tensions following George Floyd’s death. Klein rejected the request, calling it “outrageous, unlawful, and unbelievably immoral,” and launched a series of rhetorical questions challenging the request’s logic. His private email quickly went public, prompting UCLA to place him on leave and ban him from campus. Dean Bernardo described the incident as “troubling conduct” and an “abuse of power,” sending a campus-wide email that led to Klein receiving death threats and other harassment.
During testimony, Klein highlighted his 44-year unblemished teaching career, noting his consistent contract renewals, merit raises, and teaching of over 25,000 students. He emphasized that boosting grades for one demographic would unavoidably harm others under UCLA’s curve-based system—and that identifying students by race in a fully online class is inherently impossible. He maintains his response was intended to provoke thoughtful reflection, not to mock the student, and the student later apologized.
Klein’s opening statements to the judge assert that the Dean’s public condemnation irreparably damaged his expert-witness business, costing him the bulk of his $1 million annual income. He claims emotional distress manifested as sleep issues, rashes, and strained family relationships, and he reported the threats to UCLA, the FBI, and local police .
UCLA defends its actions by insisting Klein was disciplined for tone—not content—and that the suspension was a standard personnel decision. The university also argues procedural flaws and incomplete arbitration may bar his claims. Dean Bernardo, who has headed UCLA Anderson since July 2019, is named personally in the suit.
Thursday’s opening hearings highlighted the clash between academic freedom and campus administrative response. The court will examine whether Klein was unlawfully punished for enforcing equal treatment. Observers include fellow plaintiffs challenging similar campus actions.
Next week’s proceedings will delve into Klein’s expert income losses, the substance of UCLA’s internal investigation, and whether Dean Bernardo’s expressed “principles of abuse” claim overstepped institutional bounds. A final verdict could reshape protocols for managing race-based academic requests and internal communications in higher education institutions.
