Kean University Tuition, Room & Board Payback

Date Filed: 5.13.2020

Case Number: UNN-001568-20

Location Filed: Superior Court of New Jersey

Plaintiff: Athena Brock-Murray

Summary: A Kean University student (“student”) filed a class-action lawsuit against Kean University demanding repayment for paid tuition, mandatory fees, or voluntary fees for privileges or services Kean University failed to provide due to its COVID-19 related campus closure. Class Action Complaint and Jury Demand, Brock-Murray v. Kean Univ., UNN-L-001568-20 (N.J. Super. Law. Div. May. 13, 2020). The lawsuit was filed May 13, 2020, in the Superior Court of New Jersey Law Division: Union County and makes claims against Kean University for breach of contract and unjust enrichment. Id. The lawsuit highlights that as a precondition for enrollment, the student was required to and did pay tuition, as did all members of the proposed Class. Id. Additionally, the student paid tuition and fees for in-person instruction at Kean University, which covers not just the academic education, but encompass an entirely different experience from the online program, such as face to face interaction with professors, mentors, peers, extra-curricular activities, and facilities. Id. 

The suit claims Kean University breached its contract with students by failing to provide those services and has otherwise not performed under the contract. Id. Alternatively, Kean University is unjustly enriched because it continued to charge for tuition and reaping the financial benefit of millions of dollars from tuition-payers, despite sending students home, closing its campus and residence halls, and changing courses for the worse Class Action. Id.

The complaint reads, “although Kean University is still offering some level of academic instruction via online classes, Plaintiff and members of the proposed Class have been and will be deprived of the benefits of on-campus learning.” Id. As of 2020, Kean University's total endowment net assets exceeded $27 million. Overview of Kean University, U.S. News (2020), https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/kean-university-2622 (last visited Jun 18, 2020).

For questions about this case, please call: 800-777-7777