The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Judicial Council on Friday upheld the dismissal of an ethics complaint against federal judges who signed a letter stating they won’t hire law clerks from Columbia University following what they called the school’s failure to deal with pro-Palestinian protests over the war in Gaza.

The complaint, brought by a Texas prisoner, contended the judges gave the public reason to believe they would discriminate against those who have differing views on the Gaza conflict and would be biased against members of the Columbia community who appear before them. Chief Fifth Circuit Judge Priscilla Richman dismissed the complaint in June.