Harvard to Pay $53 Million in Settlement Over Stolen Cadaver Parts From Anatomical Gift Program

Harvard University will pay $53 million to resolve claims brought by families whose donated remains were mishandled through the institution’s anatomical gift program, according to a preliminary court approval granted Tuesday. Massachusetts Superior Court Judge Debra A. Squires-Lee authorized the proposed class action settlement, which establishes two funds to compensate affected families. The court scheduled a final approval hearing for December 9, 2026.

The case centers on Cedric Lodge, who managed Harvard Medical School’s morgue for nearly three decades before his 2023 arrest for stealing and selling cadaver parts. Lodge pleaded guilty to interstate transport of stolen human remains and received an eight-year prison sentence, while his wife Denise Lodge was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison for her involvement.

From 2018 through March 2020, Lodge transported organs, brains, skin, hands, faces and other dissected remains to his New Hampshire home without authorization from Harvard, the donors or their families. The stolen parts came from cadavers that had already been used for medical research and teaching before being scheduled for proper disposal under anatomical donation agreements.

Harvard’s leadership condemned the conduct in a statement Monday, with Dean of Medicine George Daley and Medical Education Dean Bernard Chang calling Lodge’s actions “despicable, abhorrent, and a flagrant betrayal” of the institution’s values. The settlement requires Harvard to issue a statement to claimant families reaffirming that Lodge’s criminal acts violated the university’s standards for treating anatomical donors and their families.

Beyond monetary compensation, Harvard Medical School committed to establishing an annual scholarship for medical students beginning in the 2027-2028 academic year to honor anatomical donors. Attorney John Morgan, whose firm represented the families, stated that the resolution aims to prevent similar incidents in the future.