Columbia Settles COVID-19 Refund Case

Columbia University (NY) has reached a $12.5 million settlement with students who sued the school for failing to refund fees when it pivoted to online classes in the spring of 2020. As the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the U.S., Columbia—like most U.S. colleges and universities—shifted to remote learning in an effort to keep infection rates low. A class action complaint brought against the university in April 2020 sought reimbursement for both tuition and fees for the spring semester, though the request to reimburse tuition was dismissed by a judge in February.