Judge lets part of lawsuit against Polk State College over fees proceed

A judge’s ruling has allowed a lawsuit against Polk State College over student fees paid during the COVID-19 pandemic to move forward.

Judge William Sites of the 10th Judicial Circuit Court in October dismissed part of the lawsuit filed in March on behalf of a Polk State student seeking to a refund for student fees paid while campuses were largely shut down. But Sites allowed another part of the suit to proceed with the potential to become a class-action claim joined by other former Polk State students.

The judge granted a motion by Polk State to dismiss a claim of unjust enrichment, or the idea that the college unfairly appropriated student fees. But Sites rejected the college’s motion to dismiss a claim on the grounds of breach of contract. Polk State has appealed that ruling.

John Yanchunis, the lawyer representing Polk State student Shantrell Fisher of Lakeland, described the judge’s ruling as a positive step.

“This is a victory,” Yanchunis said. “In all wars, there are battles, and we won this battle. This was not a loss by any means. This was successful.”

Yanchunis, who leads the class-action department of Morgan & Morgan, said that the lawsuit included the separate claims of unjust enrichment and breach of contract even though they were somewhat contradictory. He said Sites couldn't have allowed the suit to proceed on both claims and also could have rejected the entire suit.

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Sites dismissed the unjust enrichment claim with prejudice, meaning that it cannot be refiled.

The lawsuit does not seek to recover money paid for tuition. It instead focuses on student fees collected to cover services that Yanchunis said Polk State didn’t provide while access to its campuses in Winter Haven and Lakeland was limited because of COVID-19 protocols.

Though Fisher is the only student named in the suit, the challenge seeks to recover fees paid by all Polk State students in the academic semesters of 2020.

The suit mentions fees collected for student activities, technology and student services. The amounts for each student are relatively small, totaling $13.42 in Fisher’s case. (Students in bachelor’s programs pay slightly higher rates.)

The suit says the eligible class of former students is presumed to be at least 20,000. That would equate to more than $268,000 in collective fees paid.

“In an initial Motion to Dismiss, the court dismissed with prejudice one-half of the plaintiff's law suit, which means that part of the suit cannot be refiled,” Polk State spokesperson Madison Fantozzi said in an emailed statement. “The remaining issue will be subject to further legal challenges. During the shutdown caused by the pandemic, the College undertook an outstanding effort to provide our students with extraordinary materials and services needed to continue their education. The College is proud of what our staff, faculty, and students have achieved during a very difficult period.”

The suit could be seen as a test of a law passed in this year's legislative session intended to protect public colleges and universities from class-action lawsuits based on closures during the pandemic. But Yanchunis said he thinks the law is unconstitutional because state statute gives the Florida Supreme Court, not the Legislature, the authority to set rules for civil procedures.

Yanchunis also pointed to a prohibition in the U.S. Constitution against the adoption of laws that apply retroactively, either criminalizing or protecting actions after the fact.

Morgan & Morgan has filed similar suits against at least eight colleges and universities, including Florida A&M, Florida State University and the University of South Florida, and other firms have also filed suits.

Polk State’s lead lawyer, Robert Sniffen of Tallahassee, filed a motion in May to have the suit dismissed. Sniffen asserted a defense of sovereign immunity and said that no contract existed between Fisher and the college.

His filing said that student fees are mandated by state law and are not paid on a “fee for service” basis.

Yanchunis questioned whether Florida’s Second District Court of Appeals has jurisdiction at this point. He said that appellate courts typically only examine rulings in cases that have been concluded.

Sites hasn’t yet ruled on the request for class certification, which would allow other former Polk State students to join the suit.

Miller’s lawyers have filed a supplement in support of the motion for class certification that cites a settlement reached in a similar suit against Columbia University in New York.

If the judge grants class-action status, Polk State would have to provide Miller's lawyers with contact information for all Polk State students from the 2020 academic year. The students would be included in the lawsuit unless they opted out, Yanchunis said.

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on Twitter @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Lawsuit against Polk State over fees, will proceed