The California Daily Journal’s 2026 CLAY Award recognizes Lieff Cabraser, Farella Braun + Martel, and legal scholars Erwin Chemerinsky and Claudia Polsky for their collective efforts challenging the unlawful termination of federal research grants across the University of California system
We are proud to announce that Lieff Cabraser’s Thakur v. Trump team was recognized with a 2026 California Lawyer Attorneys of the Year (CLAY) Award by the Daily Journal for its pro bono representation of a class of University of California researchers whose federal grant funding was unlawfully terminated by the Trump Administration.
The first-of-its-kind class action challenges sweeping Executive Orders that resulted in abrupt cuts to federal research grants supporting UC researchers across multiple disciplines. Since filing the case in June 2025, the litigation team has secured multiple preliminary injunctions ordering the government to stop terminating grants and to reinstate previously canceled funding from several federal agencies.
To date, the litigation has helped restore more than 700 research grants worth nearly $1 billion across the UC system, allowing critical academic and scientific research to continue.
The LCHB team included:
Elizabeth Cabraser
Richard Heimann
Kevin Budner
Annie Wanless
Congratulations to all!
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