- Jurisdiction
- Virginia
Hello,
I reside in VA. I am looking for any help from anyone experienced in law that may have heard of or dealt with a similar case. My lawyers and I are in the process of trying to determine a legal basis to file suit against my private university and secure an injunction to get me back into school. We have a good case but are finding difficulty in the laws.
To summarize briefly, I'm a senior at a private university and have 9 credits left, 6 of which were 2 classes that weren't offered in the Fall or Spring semester. I'm not new to college, I'm 32. The Dean in my department of study mischaracterized a visit I made to her office requesting her approval on an application to take a course at another institution. In an email, she said I committed verbal abuse, yelled, threatened her and other staff members had to come and help her. She then called security. In actuality, I only asked her if she approved the form and she called security right after I asked. Previous circumstances require explanation, but there was no reason for her to do this. She did this to be purposely malicious. 2 days later I was indefinitely suspended from the university based on her email.
The key here is that I recorded the conversation that day with the Dean (iPhone). It, obviously, entirely contradicts her account. The school handbook does not prohibit recording, and my state allows one party consent to record. The university's administrative hearing committee refused to let me play the recording during the administrative hearing. They had no viable reason why they did this but tried to trick me with their electronic device policy.
After the hearing they reduced my suspension to the Spring 2019 semester, which was still unacceptable. (Anyone could easily tell she was being dishonest based on the witness testimony) When preparing the complaint, my lawyer found an issue that may cause our breach of contract complaint to be thrown out by the judge. The school has an academic catalog and a student handbook. The school handbook details the code of conduct, how students should act, discipline, etc. The school catalog explains courses, school processes and policy/regulation information. What she found was that in the catalog they have specifically: The information in this catalog is to be regarded as a binding contract between the applicant or the student and _______ University; however, the University reserves the unilateral right to change the requirements, regulations, rules, and fees set forth herein at any time without prior notice.
My lawyer said that this causes the contract between the student and university to not be mutual, in which case the contract is not a valid contract. This means the VA law, which states that the handbook/catalog is a contract between both parties (student and university), doesn't apply since it _______University's isn't a valid contract, and we can't move forward with a breach of contract case. My lawyer has determined this based off other lawsuits brought against that university that were stopped by a motion to dismiss on this basis.
What I am looking for is a way around this loophole, or another method we can move forward with, since it seems that most other cases against private schools are title discrimination cases. Negligence may be an option, but proving duty of care is an issue since the handbook isn't a valid contract. I am not sure if civil rights or discrimination may be, but we have to be able to prove it. I am sure other private schools in other states have adopted verbiage like this to circumvent litigation. I am also sure that there have been successful suits against these schools as well. There must be a way to combat this, or another avenue we can pursue. If you can offer any assistance or ideas, it would be much appreciated.
Even if other states have different laws, any relevant cases I can present to my lawyers may help. Thanks.
I reside in VA. I am looking for any help from anyone experienced in law that may have heard of or dealt with a similar case. My lawyers and I are in the process of trying to determine a legal basis to file suit against my private university and secure an injunction to get me back into school. We have a good case but are finding difficulty in the laws.
To summarize briefly, I'm a senior at a private university and have 9 credits left, 6 of which were 2 classes that weren't offered in the Fall or Spring semester. I'm not new to college, I'm 32. The Dean in my department of study mischaracterized a visit I made to her office requesting her approval on an application to take a course at another institution. In an email, she said I committed verbal abuse, yelled, threatened her and other staff members had to come and help her. She then called security. In actuality, I only asked her if she approved the form and she called security right after I asked. Previous circumstances require explanation, but there was no reason for her to do this. She did this to be purposely malicious. 2 days later I was indefinitely suspended from the university based on her email.
The key here is that I recorded the conversation that day with the Dean (iPhone). It, obviously, entirely contradicts her account. The school handbook does not prohibit recording, and my state allows one party consent to record. The university's administrative hearing committee refused to let me play the recording during the administrative hearing. They had no viable reason why they did this but tried to trick me with their electronic device policy.
After the hearing they reduced my suspension to the Spring 2019 semester, which was still unacceptable. (Anyone could easily tell she was being dishonest based on the witness testimony) When preparing the complaint, my lawyer found an issue that may cause our breach of contract complaint to be thrown out by the judge. The school has an academic catalog and a student handbook. The school handbook details the code of conduct, how students should act, discipline, etc. The school catalog explains courses, school processes and policy/regulation information. What she found was that in the catalog they have specifically: The information in this catalog is to be regarded as a binding contract between the applicant or the student and _______ University; however, the University reserves the unilateral right to change the requirements, regulations, rules, and fees set forth herein at any time without prior notice.
My lawyer said that this causes the contract between the student and university to not be mutual, in which case the contract is not a valid contract. This means the VA law, which states that the handbook/catalog is a contract between both parties (student and university), doesn't apply since it _______University's isn't a valid contract, and we can't move forward with a breach of contract case. My lawyer has determined this based off other lawsuits brought against that university that were stopped by a motion to dismiss on this basis.
What I am looking for is a way around this loophole, or another method we can move forward with, since it seems that most other cases against private schools are title discrimination cases. Negligence may be an option, but proving duty of care is an issue since the handbook isn't a valid contract. I am not sure if civil rights or discrimination may be, but we have to be able to prove it. I am sure other private schools in other states have adopted verbiage like this to circumvent litigation. I am also sure that there have been successful suits against these schools as well. There must be a way to combat this, or another avenue we can pursue. If you can offer any assistance or ideas, it would be much appreciated.
Even if other states have different laws, any relevant cases I can present to my lawyers may help. Thanks.
