Case Western Reserve University student sues for tuition, fees refund after virtual learning semester

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - A Case Western Reserve student filed suit against the university Tuesday evening, requesting a refund for tuition and fees he feels are owed to him due spring semester 2020 moving online amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The lawsuit said the plaintiff, Daniel Lozada, believes he paid for an in-person learning experience, which COVID-19 did not allow. He asks the university prorate costs from spring semester 2020.

Case Western has not done so.

Lozada, a junior studying economicis, paid $26,000 in tuition and fees for the spring semester 2020, according to the lawsuit.

The plaintiff’s suit was filed in the U.S. District Court in Cleveland by New York attorneys who have been filing similar lawsuits across the country.

It alleged the university breached its contract by not providing in-person, on-campus educational instruction past March 10, 2020.

The yearly average of tuition at Case Western is $52,448, and the lawsuit said prices were set with the intention of in-person learning.

Lozada, who lives in Cleveland, paid $202 in mandatory undergraduate activity fees during the spring semester 2020, according to the lawsuit.

“Plaintiff and the Class have paid Mandatory Fees for services and facilities that were simply not provided during the Spring 2020 semester,” the lawsuit reads.

The lawsuit said the university programs sustained by these fees were closed at the onset of the pandemic.

If approved by a judge, other Case Western students can join this suit because it is class-action.

The university told 19 News, "Case Western Reserve is reviewing the complaint and has no comment at this time.”

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