Can I sue a CUNY college for negligence?

Hisham

New Member
Jurisdiction
New York
Here is what happened: In the summer of 2015 AFTER I had run out of fin aid, I was offered financial aid(I was surprised but I accepted). Everything went smoothly and I was allowed to take classes. So fast forward to December of 2015(classes ended) and I receive a letter from college saying I owe fall tuition for the semester just had just ended(mind you this is the only communication I got from the college the entire semester). I immediately went online and signed into my college account and saved a VALIDATED tuition bill for that very semester. Validated from Bursars on October 21, 2015. My question is, am I liable for the issue between them and the federal government? If something had happened, shouldn't they have warned me about it? Why did they continue to look the other way until the very end? Do I have a case or not?
 
I was offered financial aid(I was surprised but I accepted). Everything went smoothly and I was allowed to take classes.

What do you mean "everything went smoothly"?

What did you do to get WRITTEN verification that you actually had the aid and that money was being paid to the school at the beginning of the semester when the fees were due?
 
So by "everything went smoothly" I mean like they let continue to take my my classes, did not inform me of any problem, and by continuing allowing me to take classes I assumed they received payment from the financial aid. They have blocked me from my college account so I don't have written verification that I actually had aid BUT I do have a verified bill from the bursars for that semester and financial aid office has confirmed to me that I actually had aid for said semester. I am going to the college financial aid office tomorrow and I should get more information. I called the fin aid office on Friday and they told me that since this is a financial aid issue I would have to talk to financial aid so she connected me to the aid office and they confirmed that I actually had aid for that semester but they couldn't figure what happened. If, for whatever reason, they don't listen to me and still demand that I unjustly pay them, what are my options in that situation? It seems to me that they waited until the very end of the semester to inform me so they could get paid.
 
You're getting way ahead of yourself. They've already acknowledged that you had aid for the semester, so the likelihood that they will insist on payment is low. There will be plenty of time to investigate options if it actually happens.
 
they don't listen to me and still demand that I unjustly pay them, what are my options in that situation?

Based on what you say, no one listens to you.

If that is the case, you're wasting your time when people refuse to acknowledge you exist.
 
The school isn't responsible for your financial aid issues. It isn't clear who informed you that you did have funds for the semester or why you originally believed you did not have funds. You will have to talk to the financial aid office first to find out the full story.
 
Ok now I have the entire story: the fin aid office confirmed to me I was offered fin aid for the fall of 2015 which I accepted and aid was disbursed for said semester(I was allowed to take classes) but on 10/7/15 the education dept. realized I had reached my pell lifetime limit and they refused to pay on my behalf( I had NO knowledge that this was happening) the college failed to inform me of this. The bursars validated my bill for 2015 fall on 10/21/15. The college informed me at the very end of semester when classes had finished that I owe them. I'm not crazy or stupid, I would've dropped the classes if they had kept me in the loop. The fin aid offic admitted they are at fault for not contacting me in a timely manner. I just don't feel I should be punished for the colleges mistake.
 
How are you being punished for having to pay for classes that you took? Why should the college be out because you accepted a financial aid award you were not entitled to and the lender finally caught the mistake? Even if you had dropped out mid-semester, you would have still owed the tuition of it was after the drop/add deadline. You are the one ultimately responsible for paying for tuition and for managing your own financial aid, including knowing the limits and when you reached them. There are thousands of students the school and government and lenders have to keep track of but you only need to worry about you. It isn't the college's fault you applied for aid you were not entitled to or that you accepted anyway and hoped no one caught it.
 
am I liable for the issue between them and the federal government?

I don't know to whom "them" refers, but you are, of course, liable to pay tuition for classes taken.

Do I have a case or not?

If you're asking if your post indicates a viable negligence claim against your college, the answer is no.

If, for whatever reason, they don't listen to me and still demand that I . . . pay them, what are my options in that situation?

Your options are to pay the bill or not pay the bill and (probably) get sued. If you get sued, then you can make all of your arguments in your defense.

I just don't feel I should be punished for the colleges mistake.

Punished? "College[']s mistake"? You're being made to pay for classes you actually took. You claim that the only reason you took the classes is because you thought you were eligible for one of many different types of financial aid and claim that the reason you thought this was because the college extended an offer. But here's the thing that you don't seem to have recognized (and which "ElleMD's" response hints at): YOU knew or should have known that you had exhausted your eligibility for this particular type of financial aid. In fact, you wrote that you were surprised about the offer, and the source of that surprise was, presumably, because you knew you were no longer longer eligible. Right? When you received the offer, did you respond by saying, "hey, wait a minute, I think I'm out of eligibility"? Anything like that? If not, why not?
 
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