Enrollment Contract Provisions, "Take Home" COVID Litigations, UC Admissions Scandal Continues

(From Schwartz Hannum PC) Amid this period of uncertainty, schools should be careful in considering how to draft their annual enrollment contracts to protect from litigation seeking partial tuition refunds, experts at Schwartz Hannum PC advised. The recommended provisions include:

• Force majeure provisions that allow for alterations to school operations due to forces outside its control.
• Educational outcomes provisions that establish a school’s contractual right to alter its programming, in its sole discretion.
• Recording consent agreements to ensure the school can provide instruction to all of its students whenever and wherever they may be learning.
• COVID-19 waivers, assumptions of risk and notices, “in light of each state’s law and each school’s individual culture.”

More from Schwartz Hannum PC

(From Reuters) U.S. businesses with COVID-19 outbreaks are facing an emerging legal threat from claims that workers brought coronavirus home and infected relatives, as recent court decisions address how much obligation educational institutions may have to prevent wrongful death “take home” cases and how claims will be litigated. Between 7% and 9% of the roughly 200,000 U.S. COVID-19 deaths so far are believed to stem from take-home infections and the lawsuits could cost businesses up to $21 billion if the number of Americans fatalities reaches 300,000, according to Praedicat, a firm that evaluates risks for insurers. Reuters legal reporter Tom Hals concluded that best protection for business owners will be adopting and documenting measures to protect workers.

More from Reuters

(From Inside Higher Ed) The University of California improperly admitted dozens of students based on their personal or family connections to donors and university staff, the state auditor announced last week. Shortly following the state auditor’s report, new details regarding improper admission decisions were released, which revealed that a member of the college’s governing board, inappropriately wrote a letter that helped an unqualified student get into UC Berkeley. Legal experts say the letter violates a 1996 UC Board of Regents policy that campuses are only supposed to accept letters of recommendation "during the regular admissions process." The governance member said he respected the findings and concerns raised in the audit but added that he had never been told his letters of recommendation were improper. All of this raises questions for the university and admissions professionals nationwide, according to Inside Higher Ed.

More from Inside Higher Ed