Lawsuit Challenges Department of Education’s Presumptive Denial of Debt Relief to Vulnerable Student Loan Borrowers Harmed by For-Profit School Fraud
The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) has filed a lawsuit in federal court against Miguel Cardona, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education. The complaint alleges that the Department presumptively denies loan cancellations to vulnerable low-income borrowers who have not earned high school diplomas, even when they provide sufficient evidence to show that their schools falsely certified their eligibility for financial aid.
LAFLA Applauds Cancellation of Remaining Loans for Former Corinthian Students
LAFLA welcomes this week’s announcement that the U.S. Department of Education will finally cancel the outstanding federal student loans of more than 500,000 borrowers harmed by Corinthian Colleges’ fraud. Corinthian Colleges operated multiple schools in Southern California under the names Everest College and Wyotech. “Justice for Corinthian students is long overdue,” said LAFLA Senior Attorney […]
LAFLA and NCLC Advocates Testify Before House Subcommittee on Closed School Discharges
WASHINGTON — Representatives from the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles and the National Consumer Law Center provided testimony today before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Investment — offering perspectives on improving the federal loan discharge process for borrowers harmed by sudden school closures. “The [U.S. Department of Education’s] […]
Webinar on Aug. 4 About For-Profit School Closures
More students impacted by school closures: What should Independence University, CollegeAmerica, Stevens-Henager College, and California College San Diego students do? Wednesday, August 4, 202112:00 to 1:00 p.m. PDT This webinar will provide students with information about student loan discharges and other information regarding the closure of the Center for Excellence in Higher Education (CEHE) schools, […]
Webinar for Thousands of Students Impacted by Sudden Closure of Online Schools
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 3, 2021 Contacts: Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles, Sara Williams, sjwilliams@lafla.org National Consumer Law Center, Jan Kruse, jkruse@nclc.org Webinar for Thousands of Students Impacted by Sudden Closure of Online Schools Washington, D.C. — This week, four large, national college chains are closing, stranding more than 7,000 students, most of whom […]
Surprise Outcome for Veteran
Manuel, a Gulf War-era Navy veteran, initially came to LAFLA for help with his student loans. He owed nearly $40,000; and as a single father on Social Security Disability Insurance benefits, he simply couldn’t afford to make student loan payments. At LAFLA, we are proud to serve low-income Veterans and their families through our Veterans […]
Hope for Victims of For-Profit College Fraud
The for-profit college industry has made billions of dollars by targeting vulnerable communities through predatory, deceptive, and even illegal practices. Many of their students have ended up with staggering, insurmountable debt—unable to find jobs, repay their loans, and ultimately advance their lives. Athena was struggling to provide for her two young children on a minimum-wage […]
Lawsuit Challenges U.S. Departments of Education and Justice Over Illegal Denials of Federal Loan Consolidations
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Jan. 30, 2019: Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) filed a lawsuit in federal district court this week against the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), on behalf of a former student of a now-defunct for-profit college. The lawsuit challenges a longstanding policy that prevents borrowers […]
Students Defrauded by Marinello Schools of Beauty Granted Belated Discharges
After watching a TV commercial praising Marinello’s cosmetology program, Lydia Luna excitedly envisioned a bright future as a hair stylist. She thought enrolling at Marinello Schools of Beauty would be her ticket to a steady job. “I was starting my life from the bottom up,” said Lydia, who wanted to launch a new career after […]
Debt Relief for Defrauded Student Loan Borrower Who Attended Career Institute
After struggling for three decades with repayment and a lawsuit filed by Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (Escobedo v. Betsy DeVos, U.S. District Court, Central District. of Cal., Case No. CV 17-07586), student loan borrower Sonia Escobedo finally received full forgiveness of the federal student loans that were fraudulently obtained by Career Institute in […]
