An order by the San Francisco Superior Court to block fee
increases for some professional-school students last week is
forcing the University of California to begrudgingly lower student
fees in what could cost the university as much as $15 million in
fee revenue.
A preliminary injunction issued by the court will prohibit the
university from implementing its 2004-2005 fee increases for some
students in professional schools such as law, medicine and
business.
Hanan Eisenman, a spokesman for the UC Office of the President,
said the university was forced to raise fees because of state
budget cuts and the court’s decision will further aggravate
the UC’s difficult financial position.
Eisenman said though the university will comply with the order,
officials believe the university will “ultimately prevail
based on the merits of this case.”
“Other courts have recognized that universities must have
the flexibility to respond to state budget cuts,” Eisenman
added.
The preliminary injunction issued by Judge James Warren will
affect approximately 3,000 students who were enrolled in UC
professional schools in 2002 and are currently still enrolled.
The injunction issued is part of a lawsuit filed by students who
say that increasing student fees beyond what was promised at their
time of enrollment is a breach of contract by the university.
A previous request for a preliminary injunction relief was
denied and students had to pay fee increases for 2003-2004. The
current preliminary injunction issued will prohibit the UC from
raising fees for 2004-2005 but will not rollback student fees to
2002-2003 rates.
Warren wrote in court documents that the difficulties that will
inevitably arise as the case is decided will be lessened for both
parties by maintaining fees at 2003-2004 levels. Warren added that
this approach “tends to balance the hardships in this
difficult case.”
Depending on the final outcome, the students may later be
required to pay the university the difference between their fees
paid to date and the fees assessed by the university.
But if the university loses the case, it will be required to
refund to students the difference between the amount students have
paid over the amount which the university charged when they
originally enrolled.
Anu Menon, a third-year law student at UC Berkeley and one of
the plaintiffs in the case, said the ruling is good evidence that
the lawsuit will succeed in the future.
The lawsuit was initially prompted by UC fee increases during
the spring and summer semesters of 2003. Fees were again raised
this summer for the 2004-2005 academic year.
“The professional degree fee was increased in the middle
of the spring semester 2003 without significant notice. The
university promised students the professional fees would not be
increased during their time in professional school,” Menon
said.
Eisenman said the fee increases were made necessary by the state
budget crisis and that the university tried to give students as
much notice as possible regarding fee increases in light of the
state’s tight budget.
“We were involved in a very difficult budget crisis that
forced us to make some very difficult decisions in a very short
amount of time,” Eisenman said.
“We are still trying to find out more info on how this
will practically apply,” said UC Berkeley law student Mo
Kashmiri in an e-mail last week. “This ruling means we have a
really good chance of winning the case.”
Leaders of the UC Students Association say they support the
efforts of the professional students though they are not directly
involved in the proceedings.