Qureshi, et al. v. American University

The lawsuit alleges that students who attended AU during the Spring 2020 Semester are entitled to partial refunds of tuition and fees because AU transitioned to remote instruction in March 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic in accordance with legal mandates. AU denies each and every allegation of wrongdoing, liability, and damages asserted, and AU denies that the claims in the lawsuit would be appropriate for class treatment if the litigation proceeded through trial.

The Plaintiffs’ Complaint, the Settlement Agreement, and other case-related documents are available here.

A class action is a lawsuit in which one or more persons called “Class Representatives” sue on behalf of people with similar legal claims. These people together are a “Settlement Class” or “Settlement Class Members.” The Settlement, if finally approved by the Court, resolves the issues for all Settlement Class Members, except for those who exclude themselves from the Settlement Class.

The Plaintiffs and AU have determined that it is in their best interests to settle to avoid the expenses and uncertainties associated with continued litigation. This Settlement resolves all claims asserted in the case against AU and its affiliated persons and entities. The Plaintiffs and the attorneys for the Settlement Class believe the proposed settlement is in the best interests of the Settlement Class. The Settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing by AU and does not imply that there has been, or would be, any finding that AU violated any law if the case were to move forward. AU denies each and every allegation of wrongdoing and liability in the lawsuit. The Court did not reach a decision on the merits of the lawsuit. The Court has preliminarily approved the Settlement and ordered that the Notice be provided to explain it. Nevertheless, because the settlement of a class action determines the rights of all members of the Settlement Class, the Court must give final approval to the Settlement before it can be effective. The Court has conditionally certified the Settlement Class for settlement purposes only so that Settlement Class Members receive the Notice and have the opportunity to exclude themselves from the Settlement Class or to voice their support for or opposition to final approval of the Settlement. If the Court does not give final approval to the Settlement, or if it is terminated by the Parties, the Settlement will be void, and the lawsuit will proceed as if there had been no settlement and no certification of the Settlement Class.

You are a member of the Settlement Class if you were an AU undergraduate student enrolled during the Spring 2020 Semester for whom any amount of tuition and fees were paid from any source other than a scholarship/grant from AU (e.g., your own funds, funding from a parent or other family member, loan, or non-AU scholarship/grant) for the Spring 2020 Semester, and whose tuition and fees have not been refunded in their entirety, and who is not excluded from the Settlement Class. Excluded from the Settlement Class are

1. any Judge or Magistrate Judge presiding over this Action and members of their families;
2. Defendant;
3. persons who properly execute and file a timely request for exclusion from the Settlement Class;
4. the legal representatives, successors, or assigns of any such excluded persons; and
5. AU undergraduate students who received a full scholarship from AU or otherwise were not obligated to make contributions, payments, or third-party arrangements towards tuition or fees for the Spring 2020 Semester.

The $5.439 million Settlement Fund, minus any attorneys’ fees for Class Counsel (addressed in FAQ 11), service awards for the three named Plaintiffs of up to $7,500 each, and the costs of administering the settlement, will be divided equally among all Settlement Class Members. The parties expect the payment to be approximately $400-$475 per student.

If you are a Settlement Class Member, you have four options:

1. Change your payment option if you do not want to receive payment by check. More information about submitting an Election Form can be found in FAQ 7.
2. Exclude yourself from the Settlement. More information about excluding yourself from the Settlement can be found in FAQ 8.
3. Object to the terms of the Settlement. More information about objecting to the terms of the Settlement can be found in FAQ 9.
4. Do nothing now. More information about what happens if you do nothing can be found in FAQ 10.

Students will not need to take any action to receive their share of the Settlement. Students in the Settlement Class will automatically receive their Cash Award by check mailed to their last known mailing address as reflected in AU’s records.

If you prefer to receive your share by Venmo or PayPal, you may submit an Election Form to provide your Venmo or PayPal information to the Settlement Administrator here.

If any Settlement Class Members fail to cash their Cash Award checks, the money from uncashed checks will be deposited in the general scholarship fund at AU for the purpose of providing additional student aid.

The deadline to request exclusion from the Settlement was April 1, 2024, and has passed.

The deadline to object to the Settlement was April 1, 2024, and has passed.

Students in the Settlement Class who do nothing will automatically receive a payment by check to the student’s last known mailing address as reflected in AU’s records after the Effective Date of the Settlement Agreement. You will give up any rights you may have to sue AU about the issues in this case.

Class Representative Compensation. The Court awarded reasonable service compensation to the Class Representatives for their service in the case in the amount of seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500) each, which has been paid from the Settlement Fund. This amount is in addition to any Cash Award that the Class Representatives may receive as Settlement Class Members.

Class Counsel Attorneys’ Fees, Costs, and Expenses. The attorneys who brought the lawsuit (listed in FAQ 15) were awarded attorneys’ fees equal to thirty-three percent (33%) of the Settlement Fund ($1,812,818.70) plus reimbursement of costs and expenses in the amount of $157,285.34 for the time, expense, and effort expended in investigating the facts, conducting the litigation, and negotiating the Settlement. These amounts were paid from the Settlement Fund.

Unless you exclude yourself from the Settlement, you cannot sue or be part of any other lawsuit against AU or the Released Parties about the issues in this case. This specifically includes any claim for breach of contract or any tort, common law, or statutory claim arising out of or in any way allegedly related to AU tuition, fees, and/or costs paid or incurred by or on behalf of any Settlement Class Member in connection with the Spring 2020 Semester. Unless you exclude yourself, all the decisions and judgments by the Court will bind you.

The Settlement Agreement is available here. The Settlement Agreement provides more detail regarding the Releases and describes the Released Claims with specific descriptions in necessary, accurate legal terminology, so read it carefully. If you have any questions, you can talk for free to the attorneys identified in FAQ 15 who have been appointed by the Court to represent the Settlement Class, or you are welcome to talk to any other lawyer of your choosing at your own expense.

Cash awards have been issued as of August 16, 2024.

The Court held the Final Approval Hearing on May 07, 2024. At this hearing, the Court approved the Settlement, ruling that it is fair, reasonable, adequate, and in the best interests of the Class.

The Court did not make any determination as to the merits of the claims or defenses at issue. Instead, the Settlement’s terms will take effect and the lawsuit will be dismissed on the merits with prejudice. Both sides have agreed to the Settlement to achieve an early and certain resolution to the lawsuit, so it provides specific and valuable benefits to the members of the Settlement Class.

The Court has approved these attorneys to represent the Settlement Class. They are called “Class Counsel.” You will not be charged for these lawyers. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

Class Counsel
Paul J. Doolittle POULIN | WILLEY | ANASTOPOULO, LLC 32 Ann Street Charleston, SC 29403  1-803-222-2222  Paul.doolittle@poulinwilley.com	Sarah N. Westcot BURSOR & FISHER, P.A. 701 Brickell Avenue, Suite 1420 Miami, FL 33131  1-305-330-5512  swestcot@bursor.com	Michael Tompkins LEEDS BROWN LAW, P.C. One Old Country Road, Suite 347 Carle Place, NY 11514  1-516-873-9550  Mtompkins@leedsbrownlaw.com

More details about this lawsuit and the Settlement terms are in the Settlement Agreement which, along with other documents, can be obtained here. If you have any questions, you can also call the Settlement Administrator at 1-888-497-4133 or Class Counsel at the numbers or email addresses set forth in FAQ 15. Besides the documents available on this website, all pleadings and documents filed in Court may be reviewed or copied in the Office of the Clerk.

Please do not contact the Judge, the Clerk of the Court, or American University about this case. They cannot give you advice on your options.