Mike Scarcella
(Reuters) – Dartmouth, Northwestern (NASDAQ:), Rice and Vanderbilt universities have agreed to pay a total of $166 million to settle claims that they favored wealthy students, bringing the total payout in a federal antitrust lawsuit to regarding college financial aid practices totaled $284 million. .
Lawyers for the putative class of hundreds of thousands of current and former U.S. students revealed the latest agreements in a filing late Friday in Chicago federal court.
The 2022 lawsuit said 17 prominent colleges and universities violated U.S. antitrust laws by violating a pledge not to consider students’ finances in admissions decisions, giving wealthy students an advantage.
Dartmouth and Rice said they would pay $33.75 million each. Northwestern agreed to pay $43.5 million and Vanderbilt $55 million.
Brown, Yale and Columbia universities previously agreed to pay a total of $62 million to settle claims against them.
The schools, including those that reached settlements, deny wrongdoing.
Northwestern, Dartmouth, Vanderbilt and Rice said in statements that the settlement with the plaintiffs allowed them to step away from the case and focus on their academic missions.
The case will continue against seven schools, including Cornell University, the University of Pennsylvania and Georgetown University.
Ted Normand, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said in a statement: “These new agreements will significantly increase compensation to class members for the harm we allege the defendants’ cartel caused.”
Average payments to class members are expected to be $750, according to the court filing.
Settlement agreements are subject to review and approval by a judge.