University of California Tuition, Room & Board Payback

Date Filed: 4.28.2020

Case Number: 20-cv-02925

Location Filed: Northern District of California

Plaintiff: Noah Ritter

Summary: A University of California student (“student”) filed a class-action lawsuit against University of California demanding repayment for paid tuition, mandatory fees, or voluntary fees for privileges or services University of California failed to provide due to its COVID-19 related campus closure. Class Action Complaint and Jury Demand, Ritter v. Regents of the Univ. of California, 20-CV-02925 (N.D. Cal. Apr. 28, 2020). The lawsuit was filed April 28, 2020, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and makes claims against the University of California 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 the University of California, 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 the University of California breached its contract with students by failing to provide those services and has otherwise not performed under the contract. Id. Alternatively, the University of California 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. Id.

The complaint reads, “although the University of California 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 September 25, 2018, the University of California’s total endowment net assets exceeded $118 billion. University of California investment assets under management show strong gains, University of California (2020), https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/press-room/university-california-investment-assets-under-management-show-strong-gains-0#:~:text=The%20UC%20endowment%20grew%208.9,market%20gains%20of%20%241.3%20billion. (last visited Jun 16, 2020).

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