XML 46 R30.htm IDEA: XBRL DOCUMENT v3.24.0.1
Litigation
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Litigation Litigation
The Company is involved in litigation and other legal proceedings arising out of the ordinary course of its business. Certain of these matters are discussed below. From time to time, certain matters may arise that are other than ordinary and routine. The outcome of such matters is uncertain, and the Company may incur costs in the future to defend, settle, or otherwise resolve them. The Company accrues for estimated costs related to existing lawsuits, claims and proceedings when it is probable that it will incur these costs in the future and the costs are reasonably estimable. The Company currently believes that the ultimate outcome of such matters will not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. However, depending on the amount and timing, an unfavorable resolution of some or all of these matters could materially affect future results of operations in a particular period.
On April 20, 2021, Capella University received a letter from the Department of Education referencing Wright, et al. v. Capella Education Co., et al. (subsequently captioned Ornelas, et al. v. Capella, et al.), United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, Case No. 18-cv-1062, and indicating that the Department would require a fact-finding process pursuant to the borrower defense to repayment regulations to determine the validity of more than 1,000 borrower defense applications that have been submitted regarding Capella University. According to the Department, some of the applications allege similar claims as in the Wright matter concerning alleged misrepresentations of the length of time to complete doctoral programs. Capella University subsequently received approximately 500 applications for borrower defense to repayment. Capella University contested each claim for defense to repayment in individualized responses with supporting evidence, the last of which was sent to the Department in August 2021. Since that time, Capella University has not received any communication from the Department related to the set of borrower defense claims received in 2021, nor has Capella University received indication that any of these claims has been evaluated on the facts presented and adjudicated on the merits.
On June 22, 2022, in litigation in which Capella University is not a party, Sweet, et al. v. Miguel Cardona and the United States Department of Education, United States District Court for the Northern District of California, Case No. 3:19-cv-03674-WHA, the Department joined a proposed class settlement agreement that resulted in a blanket grant of automatic, presumptive relief for all borrower defense to repayment applications filed by students at any of approximately 150 different listed institutions, including Capella University, through June 22, 2022. The class settlement agreement also provided certain expedited review of borrower defense claims related to schools excluded from the automatic relief list, as well as for borrowers who applied during the period after execution of the settlement and before final approval (“Post-Class Applicants”). The district court granted final approval of the settlement on November 16, 2022. Intervenors, including multiple intervening higher education institutions and companies, appealed the district court’s order. Intervenors’ request to stay the district court’s final judgment approving the settlement pending resolution of the appeal has been denied.
It is unclear whether the Department might seek recovery for the amounts of loans discharged pursuant to the automatic relief provision in the Sweet settlement. In a July 25, 2022 filing in the same litigation, the Department stated that providing automatic relief to such borrowers “does not constitute the granting or adjudication of a borrower defense pursuant to the Borrower Defense Regulations, and therefore provides no basis to the Department for initiating a borrower defense recoupment proceeding against any institution identified” on the list. The Department has indicated that any recoupment against institutions “could be imposed only after the Department initiated a separate, future proceeding, in accordance with regulations that require the Department to prove a sufficient basis for liability and provide schools with notice and an opportunity to be heard.” If the Department were to seek recovery for the amounts of automatically discharged loans of Capella University students under the Sweet settlement, Capella University would dispute and defend against such efforts. At this time, the Company is unable to predict the ultimate outcome of Capella-related borrower defense applications. If the Department were to successfully seek recovery for the amounts of discharged loans from Capella University in future proceedings, any such recovery could have a material adverse effect on our business.
As a result of the Fifth Circuit’s August 7, 2023 nationwide injunction of the 2022 Borrower Defense to Repayment Regulations, the Department announced that while it will not adjudicate any borrower defense applications under the 2022 Borrower Defense to Repayment Regulations unless and until the effective date is reinstated, it will continue to adjudicate
applications under a prior version of the rule if required pursuant to a court ordered settlement. For the Sweet Post-Class Applicants, the Department agreed to adjudicate such claims under the 2016 BDTR Rule, and, if the Department does not adjudicate the applications by January 28, 2026, it will provide the applicants “Full Settlement Relief” (i.e., federal student loan(s) associated with the borrower’s attendance at the school will be discharged, the Department will refund any amounts paid to the Department on those loans, and the credit tradeline for those loans will be deleted from the borrower’s credit report). The Department has informed institutions that: it is notifying most schools of all applications received by the Department from June 23, 2022 to November 15, 2022 (constituting Sweet Post-Class Applicants) in a single send (and anticipates completing notification to all schools by approximately April 2024).
On January 25, 2024, Capella University received notice that the Department received approximately 6,700 borrower defense to repayment applications with claims for forgiveness of loans taken out at the University and filed between June 23, 2022 and November 15, 2022. On February 1, 2024, Strayer University received notice that the Department received approximately 1,900 borrower defense to repayment applications with claims for forgiveness of loans taken out at the University and filed between June 23, 2022 and November 15, 2022. In the notices received, the Department indicated that: (1) the notification was occurring prior to any substantive review of the application as well as its adjudication; (2) it would send the applications to Capella University and Strayer University in batches of 500 per week; (3) it is optional for institutions to respond to the applications; and (4) not responding will result in no negative inference by the Department. The Department has also explained that it will separately decide whether to seek recoupment on any approved claim and that any recoupment actions the Department chooses to initiate will have their own notification and response processes, which include providing additional evidence to the institution. The Department has indicated that an institution will learn of the Department’s determination only if it approves a BDTR application and the Department seeks recoupment. In relation to the 2021 notice received by Capella University, the Department indicated there were more than 1,000 applications pending, but the Company only ever received approximately 500 actual claims, and after an exhaustive review and response process the Company believes that none properly stated a claim for loan forgiveness. At this time, the Company is unable to predict whether the Department will grant BDTR relief for the claims noticed on January 25 and February 1, or if so, whether it will seek recoupment from Capella University or Strayer University. If the Department were to seek recoupment, Capella University and Strayer University would dispute and defend against such efforts. However, if the Department were to successfully seek recovery for the amounts of discharged loans from Strayer University and Capella University in future proceedings, any such recovery could have a material adverse effect on our business.