Courts are set to decide several major cases that could redefine federal leverage over universities, with five suits emerging as pivotal for admissions, research funding, and campus speech. Legal filings involve challenges to federal actions targeting institutions—most prominently the administration’s aggressive enforcement measures against elite campuses and its use of funding levers. The roundup identifies cases where outcomes could alter how universities manage foreign research relationships, admissions policies, and governance. Plaintiffs include leading universities and student groups; defendants include multiple federal agencies. Higher education legal teams say these suits will determine whether administrative actions become enduring policy tools or are checked by the judiciary.