Courthouse News Service, Golden Gate University Sued Over Cancelled JD Program:
A group of Golden Gate University law students and the university's alumni association filed a lawsuit accusing the university and its president of unlawful business practices that have resulted in the planned discontinuation of Golden Gate's Juris Doctor program.
The students said in a complaint filed Wednesday in California Superior Court in San Francisco that Golden Gate President David Fike caused the closure of the program by taking out $60 million in loans in 2019, committing to what they said were untested online law degree programs while offering free tuitions to all incoming law students in 2022.
Fike, they claim, "knew or should have known that if the university and the law school began operating two new, untested degree programs, at the same time as making these other changes, there was no likelihood that the university would be solvent enough to pay back the loans." …
"It is simply astonishing that a university could promote free tuition for its students and then run out of money before those students finish their degree. The fact that this occurred speaks to the serious leadership issues at the university," the law students said in their complaint.
Law.com, Golden Gate Law School Sued for Sunsetting JD Program
Prior TaxProf Blog coverage:
- Struggling San Francisco Law School Slashes Class Size, Cancels Tuition (Sept. 30, 2022)
- ABA Gives Golden Gate Law School 3-Year Extension To Meet 75% Bar Passage Accreditation Standard (Mar. 30, 2023)
- Golden Gate University Law School Faces Bankruptcy, Closure (June 21, 2023)
- 122-Year Old Golden Gate Law School Will Keep Its Doors Open A Little Longer Despite Continued Financial Woes (June 26, 2023)
- Golden Gate Law School Won’t Close, But Faculty Layoffs May Be Coming (July 14, 2023)
- Golden Gate Law School Sends Discontinuation Notices To Tenured Faculty, Paving Way For Possible Termination In FY25 (July 17, 2023)
- Golden Gate Will Terminate Its JD Program In May 2024; 1Ls And 2Ls Can Complete Their Degrees At Other Law Schools (Dec. 1, 2023)
- ABA Rejects Golden Gate Law School's Plan To Terminate Its JD Program (Dec. 2, 2023)
- July 2023 California Bar Exam Results (Dec. 22, 2023)
