A drone view of a California High-Speed Rail Bridge where it crosses over Highway 99 in Fresno, California, U.S. June 8, 2025. REUTERS/Fred Greaves

WASHINGTON, Dec 10 - A U.S. judge Wednesday rejected the Justice Department's bid to toss out a lawsuit filed by California to challenge the move by President Donald Trump's administration to cancel more than $4 billion in federal grants for the state's high-speed rail project.

The California High Speed Rail Authority in July filed suit that challenged the cancellation as an "arbitrary and capricious" abuse of authority. U.S. District Judge Dale Drozd rejected the government's argument that the case belongs in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.

(Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington, Editing by Franklin Paul)