Donald Trump unveils Trump University in 2005. (Getty)
Lawsuits in New York state court and California federal court are moving forward against Trump University, the now-defunct real estate training program started by Donald Trump in 2005. Trump has vigorously defended himself against attacks from his opponents about the program, saying it was successful and that the lawsuits are not a big deal.
“It’s something I could have settled many times,” Trump said during the last Republican debate. “I could settle it right now for very little money, but I don’t want to do it out of principle. The people that took the course all signed, most, many, many signed report cards saying it was fantastic, it was wonderful, it was beautiful. And believe me, I’ll win that case.”
The first lawsuit was filed in 2013 by New York Attorney General Eric Schniederman, who called the real estate program a “bait and switch scheme.” According to the New York Times, the suit seeks $40 million in restitution for 600 New Yorkers who Schneiderman claims were defrauded by Trump University. The attorney general said the school made “false promises” and convinced people to “spend tens of thousands of dollars they couldn’t afford for lessons they never got.”
According to the Times, a New York appeals court ruled on March 1 that the lawsuit may go forward. Trump’s attorneys plan to appeal that decision.
(Getty)
Across the country, a federal class-action lawsuit filed against Trump University by a group of students in 2010 could go to trial by this summer. According to online court documents, the final pre-trial conference in the hearing is set for May 6.
Trump is on the witness list for the trial. No court date has been set.
Read more about Trump University, and see the documents filed in the cases, at the link below:
