NC Newsline, other media outlets sue UNC for access to report on School of Civic Life

Six North Carolina news organizations, including NC Newsline, are suing the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill for refusing to release a report on its School of Civic Life and Leadership.

The university paid $1.2 million to the law firm K&L Gates to review the program in 2025. UNC received the report in early 2026, but has refused repeated requests by reporters to release it, according to the lawsuit.

The plaintiffs say the 400-page report is a public record because it was paid for with public funds, so it should be released.

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The School of Civic Life and Leadership has been controversial since it was created in 2023. Critics say the school’s creation and its current leadership “have violated UNC academic policies, traditions, and procedures related to curriculum, hiring, faculty tenure and status, faculty governance, and funding,” according to the lawsuit. University leaders have long defended the program, saying it’s an effort to improve civil dialogue on campus.

K&L Gates’ report included interviews with 50 people and reviews of 200,000 records, according to the lawsuit.

UNC officials refused to release the report, the filing says, because it contained “sensitive and confidential personnel information” and could relate to potential legal claims. But the university also denied requests to release an executive summary that could have omitted any legally sensitive details.

In addition to NC Newsline, the media coalition behind the lawsuit includes The News & Observer, WRAL-TV, The Daily Tar Heel, The Assembly, and Carolina Public Press. It’s asking the judge to review the report and order the university to make the results public.

The complaint, filed in Orange County Superior Court, also names UNC-CH Chancellor Lee Roberts and general counsel Paul Newton as defendants.

This story has been updated to correct that the lawsuit names the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, not the University of North Carolina System.