Legal News

Mad Grad! Woman Sues School Over Unemployment

By Ashby Jones

In the current economic climate, it seems it was just a matter of time until we saw a lawsuit like this one pop up. (Recent unemployed law grads, take note).

Trina Thompson, who graduated from Monroe College in the Bronx in April, has sued the school to get her tuition money back. Her claim: the school hasn’t done enough to help get her a job. Click here and here for stories from the NY Post and AP, respectively.

In a suit filed in New York state Supreme Court on July 24, the 27 year-old Thompson is asking for the return of some $70,000 she spent on tuition because she hasn’t found employment since earning her bachelor’s degree. She claims the business-oriented school hasn’t done enough to try to help Thompson find a job.

“They have not tried hard enough to help me,” wrote Thompson, in her lawsuit.

“The lawsuit is completely without merit,” school spokesman Gary Axelbank said. “The college prides itself on the excellent career-development support that we provide to each of our students, and this case does not deserve further consideration.”

According to the NY Post story, Thompson is living with her mother, and the pair is “struggling to get by.” “This is not the way we want to live our life,” the mom, Carol Thompson, said. “This is not what we planned.” Carol is reportedly concerned about her daughter’s loans going into repayment soon. “We’re going to be homeless, and we’ll still have a student loan to pay,” Carol said.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on August 03, 2009 (boomark / email).