UM Students Want a Refund Over COVID-19 Closures, Putative Class Action Filed
Some University of Miami students aren't satisfied with online classes, which they claim diminish the value of their degrees.
April 10, 2020 at 11:53 AM
3 minute read
A University of Miami student from South Carolina, disgruntled to be back home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, has turned to federal court with a putative class action lawsuit that claims she and hundreds of other students aren't getting their money's worth.
Named plaintiff Adelaide Dixon was staying at UM's Coral Gables campus to complete her full-time degree — until the university sent everyone home and suspended all in-person activities for the rest of spring semester.
Now dissatisfied with her online courses, Dixon alleges she wasn't offered a refund.
And that's unfair, according to her lawsuit, which claims Dixon and hundreds of other students paid higher fees for an "in-person, hands-on curriculum," but what they got was online classes that will diminish the value of the degree "for the rest of plaintiff's life."
The complaint claims students are missing out on face-to-face interactions with professors and peers, access to facilities, participation in student unions and government, sports and other activities, and opportunities to network and develop social independence. Dixon alleges class members chose UM out of "hundreds, if not thousands" of other schools for precisely those benefits.
"Although defendant 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," the complaint said.
UM did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The lawsuit, filed in the District of South Carolina, accuses UM of breach of contract and unjust enrichment. It seeks damages and a refund for the 2020 spring semester's fees and costs, including room and board, parking fees and extracurricular fees.
There's no mention of what the plaintiff is studying, but Dixon's LinkedIn page says she began a marketing degree at UM's business school in 2018, and is set to graduate in 2022.
Eric Poulin and Roy Willey of Anastopoulo Law Firm in Charleston, South Carolina, represent the plaintiff. They did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
More than $5 million is at stake, according to the complaint, which quotes a statement on UM's student housing page that said, "Living on campus opens a world of interaction with other students, faculty and staff members in many social, developmental and academic activities."
Poulin and Willey also represent student Grainger Rickenbaker, named plaintiff in a similar lawsuit against Drexel University in Philadelphia.
|Read the complaint:
Read more:
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllEx-St. Thomas Univ. Law Professor Sues School Over Firing, Alleging Defamation
4 minute read'It's a Great Day to Be a Gator Lawyer': UF Takes Top Spot on Bar Exam
Judge Says University of Miami Should Face Discrimination Case by Ex-Department Chair
4 minute readTrending Stories
- 1NY District Attorneys Ask for Level Funding Amid Statewide Drop in Violent Crime
- 2Texas Trial Boutique Matches Milbank Bonuses, Paying up to $140K
- 3'Final Countdown': SEC Launches Nearly 800% Litigation Surge in October
- 4On the Employment Front, What Changes Are Likely Under Trump?
- 5By the Numbers: The 2024 LTN Law Firm Tech Survey
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250