Twelve universities and three academic trade groups, including the AAU, sued the Defense Department in May 2025 after it moved to cap reimbursement for "indirect costs" — facilities, equipment and shared research staff — at 15%. Murphy issued a temporary restraining order blocking the policy that June and entered judgment for the plaintiffs in December. The AAU was represented by Paul Clement of Clement & Murphy and Lindsay Harrison of Jenner & Block, neither of whom responded to requests for comment, alongside the Justice Department and spokespeople for both the AAU and the Defense Department. University general counsel tracking the parallel NIH and Department of Energy caps now have a ruling to point to. Firms litigating those caps are expected to cite Murphy's reasoning once their own cases reach the fee-recovery stage.