The University System of Maryland spent at least $199,999—and may have authorized up to $600,000—on a law‑firm investigation into allegations that University of Maryland president Darryll Pines committed plagiarism, The Baltimore Banner reported. The Ropes & Gray-led inquiry, which lasted more than a year, concluded the committee found no evidence of scholarly misconduct by Pines but did identify repeated reuse of introductory passages and an authorship discrepancy in a separate text. System officials have refused to release the underlying report, citing confidentiality and personnel‑record rules, a move that has intensified public scrutiny of transparency and investigative costs at flagship campuses.