A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Yale University by a South Korean institution that said it had been “publicly humiliated and deeply shamed” by an administrative error at Yale.
Officials at Dongguk University filed suit in 2008 after Yale erroneously confirmed that a professor hired by Dongguk had earned an art-history doctorate at Yale. When it came to light that the professor had forged her credentials, the incident became a cause célèbre in South Korea. Dongguk alleged that it had taken heavy losses in government grants and alumni donations, and it accused Yale of forging documents to cover up its mistake.
In February the judge, Tucker L. Melancon, refused to throw out the suit. But he reversed course on Friday, dismissing the charges of defamation and negligence, according to the Associated Press. Dongguk, the judge said, had not offered any compelling evidence that Yale acted maliciously.
