Harvard reaches $53 million settlement over medical school body parts scandal

Harvard University has agreed to a $53 million settlement to resolve lawsuits filed by families whose donated loved ones' remains were mishandled at the Harvard Medical School. The proposed class-action settlement was submitted to a Boston state court on August 17, 2026, and received preliminary judicial approval shortly thereafter.

The scandal emerged following the 2023 arrest of Cedric Lodge, the former manager of the university's morgue, who worked at the institution for nearly three decades. Prosecutors established that between 2018 and 2021, Lodge stole and sold human remains—including heads, brains, skin, and hands—on the black market. In December 2025, Lodge was sentenced by a federal court to eight years in prison for his role in the trafficking of these anatomical gifts. The settlement aims to provide closure to the affected families who donated their relatives' bodies specifically for medical research and education purposes.