Any experience of walking away from a school contract?

[Anonymous]

A school won’t necessarily fill a spot even if there is a waitlist.

We are on a waitlist for an expansion year. But we know there is empty space and the school is actively soliciting applications for that grade. And it sucks but I understand that the school is trying to fill a specific spot and my DS isn’t right for that spot.

So you can drop out but the school may not be able to easily fill the spot while hitting their other goals.

Don’t know how that influences “duty to mitigate”. Maybe school says there is not an equivalent student seeking admission.

OP, try and get out your contract and let us know what happens. Might be helpful for the next person.

[Anonymous]

We transferred to a different private in the summer and honored our obligation to pay the full tuition to the school we had previously been enrolled at and had committed to for that school year. It never occurred to us not to pay. Also, the new school would not actually enroll our son until they had the information from the other school that we had honored our commitment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A school won’t necessarily fill a spot even if there is a waitlist.

We are on a waitlist for an expansion year. But we know there is empty space and the school is actively soliciting applications for that grade. And it sucks but I understand that the school is trying to fill a specific spot and my DS isn’t right for that spot.

So you can drop out but the school may not be able to easily fill the spot while hitting their other goals.

Don’t know how that influences “duty to mitigate”. Maybe school says there is not an equivalent student seeking admission.

OP, try and get out your contract and let us know what happens. Might be helpful for the next person.

It means if the school has a qualified applicant ready, willing, and able to pay in full before the school year starts, then there aren’t any damages. The fact that the applicant was waitlisted rather than denied is a strong indicator that the candidate is qualified, even if the candidate isn’t the school’s first choice.

It’s just like landlords who have a tenant who broke the lease. If an applicant who meets objective criteria (ie passes credit and background check) is willing to sign a lease, the landlord can reject that applicant but then waives the right to seek damages from the tenant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A school won’t necessarily fill a spot even if there is a waitlist.

We are on a waitlist for an expansion year. But we know there is empty space and the school is actively soliciting applications for that grade. And it sucks but I understand that the school is trying to fill a specific spot and my DS isn’t right for that spot.

So you can drop out but the school may not be able to easily fill the spot while hitting their other goals.

Don’t know how that influences “duty to mitigate”. Maybe school says there is not an equivalent student seeking admission.

OP, try and get out your contract and let us know what happens. Might be helpful for the next person.

It means if the school has a qualified applicant ready, willing, and able to pay in full before the school year starts, then there aren’t any damages. The fact that the applicant was waitlisted rather than denied is a strong indicator that the candidate is qualified, even if the candidate isn’t the school’s first choice.

It’s just like landlords who have a tenant who broke the lease. If an applicant who meets objective criteria (ie passes credit and background check) is willing to sign a lease, the landlord can reject that applicant but then waives the right to seek damages from the tenant.

You may get there, but this would be in the context of a lawsuit, not you trying to explain to the school whose contract you breached that they don't have damages. They are going to sue you.

[Anonymous]

The pool of people who are on the waitlist for the same grade but haven’t signed a tuition contract elsewhere is going to be quite small if there are any.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The pool of people who are on the waitlist for the same grade but haven’t signed a tuition contract elsewhere is going to be quite small if there are any.

Not true, loads of public school kids are sitting on the wait list as well as in the early years, some are not locked in because the daycare progresses to preschool to preK to Kindergarten maintaining the 60 day notice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The pool of people who are on the waitlist for the same grade but haven’t signed a tuition contract elsewhere is going to be quite small if there are any.

Not true, loads of public school kids are sitting on the wait list as well as in the early years, some are not locked in because the daycare progresses to preschool to preK to Kindergarten maintaining the 60 day notice.

Many of those "loads" of public school kids on the waitlist were admitted to another school and have since signed a contract there and are now bound to tuition at that school. Waitlists dry up quickly after the contract binding date.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The pool of people who are on the waitlist for the same grade but haven’t signed a tuition contract elsewhere is going to be quite small if there are any.

Not true, loads of public school kids are sitting on the wait list as well as in the early years, some are not locked in because the daycare progresses to preschool to preK to Kindergarten maintaining the 60 day notice.

Many of those "loads" of public school kids on the waitlist were admitted to another school and have since signed a contract there and are now bound to tuition at that school. Waitlists dry up quickly after the contract binding date.

What school did not fill its class? Cause I think maybe we are talking about different tiers of schools...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We transferred to a different private in the summer and honored our obligation to pay the full tuition to the school we had previously been enrolled at and had committed to for that school year. It never occurred to us not to pay. Also, the new school would not actually enroll our son until they had the information from the other school that we had honored our commitment.

Wait.. Please give more details. The DOJ is actively investigating these types of incidents at independent Schools. I would encourage you to contact the antitrust division if this is true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok, the question here is if you can walk away if the school is able to fill the slot with a kid from the waiting list? Can anyone explain in plain English what are the economic damages of that situation?

DP. If your contract says you cannot walk away then one can't -- and the courts consistently enforce breach of contract.

This isn't remotely accurate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A school won’t necessarily fill a spot even if there is a waitlist.

We are on a waitlist for an expansion year. But we know there is empty space and the school is actively soliciting applications for that grade. And it sucks but I understand that the school is trying to fill a specific spot and my DS isn’t right for that spot.

So you can drop out but the school may not be able to easily fill the spot while hitting their other goals.

Don’t know how that influences “duty to mitigate”. Maybe school says there is not an equivalent student seeking admission.

OP, try and get out your contract and let us know what happens. Might be helpful for the next person.

It means if the school has a qualified applicant ready, willing, and able to pay in full before the school year starts, then there aren’t any damages. The fact that the applicant was waitlisted rather than denied is a strong indicator that the candidate is qualified, even if the candidate isn’t the school’s first choice.

It’s just like landlords who have a tenant who broke the lease. If an applicant who meets objective criteria (ie passes credit and background check) is willing to sign a lease, the landlord can reject that applicant but then waives the right to seek damages from the tenant.

You may get there, but this would be in the context of a lawsuit, not you trying to explain to the school whose contract you breached that they don't have damages. They are going to sue you.

Tell them to sue and contact the media. They will eat this up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A school won’t necessarily fill a spot even if there is a waitlist.

We are on a waitlist for an expansion year. But we know there is empty space and the school is actively soliciting applications for that grade. And it sucks but I understand that the school is trying to fill a specific spot and my DS isn’t right for that spot.

So you can drop out but the school may not be able to easily fill the spot while hitting their other goals.

Don’t know how that influences “duty to mitigate”. Maybe school says there is not an equivalent student seeking admission.

OP, try and get out your contract and let us know what happens. Might be helpful for the next person.

It means if the school has a qualified applicant ready, willing, and able to pay in full before the school year starts, then there aren’t any damages. The fact that the applicant was waitlisted rather than denied is a strong indicator that the candidate is qualified, even if the candidate isn’t the school’s first choice.

It’s just like landlords who have a tenant who broke the lease. If an applicant who meets objective criteria (ie passes credit and background check) is willing to sign a lease, the landlord can reject that applicant but then waives the right to seek damages from the tenant.

You may get there, but this would be in the context of a lawsuit, not you trying to explain to the school whose contract you breached that they don't have damages. They are going to sue you.

Not really. It would be in the context of their in house or outside counsel advising them of the likelihood of success and thus whether it’s worth going after a family for tuition.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A school won’t necessarily fill a spot even if there is a waitlist.

We are on a waitlist for an expansion year. But we know there is empty space and the school is actively soliciting applications for that grade. And it sucks but I understand that the school is trying to fill a specific spot and my DS isn’t right for that spot.

So you can drop out but the school may not be able to easily fill the spot while hitting their other goals.

Don’t know how that influences “duty to mitigate”. Maybe school says there is not an equivalent student seeking admission.

OP, try and get out your contract and let us know what happens. Might be helpful for the next person.

It means if the school has a qualified applicant ready, willing, and able to pay in full before the school year starts, then there aren’t any damages. The fact that the applicant was waitlisted rather than denied is a strong indicator that the candidate is qualified, even if the candidate isn’t the school’s first choice.

It’s just like landlords who have a tenant who broke the lease. If an applicant who meets objective criteria (ie passes credit and background check) is willing to sign a lease, the landlord can reject that applicant but then waives the right to seek damages from the tenant.

You may get there, but this would be in the context of a lawsuit, not you trying to explain to the school whose contract you breached that they don't have damages. They are going to sue you.

Not really. It would be in the context of their in house or outside counsel advising them of the likelihood of success and thus whether it’s worth going after a family for tuition.

That's not how that works. It takes nothing for a school to send out a claim letter with an intent to sue and then a complaint if their letter isn't answered. They aren't hiring counsel for this - they have a firm that does this when nececessary as part of whatever other legal responsibilities they have to the school. They are just going to send the letter and/or complaint and see what happens next. They wouldn't even bother having contracts if they weren't willing to enforce them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We transferred to a different private in the summer and honored our obligation to pay the full tuition to the school we had previously been enrolled at and had committed to for that school year. It never occurred to us not to pay. Also, the new school would not actually enroll our son until they had the information from the other school that we had honored our commitment.

This is a fairly common practice. The schools have extensive, long-term relationships and are often very supportive of each other.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A school won’t necessarily fill a spot even if there is a waitlist.

We are on a waitlist for an expansion year. But we know there is empty space and the school is actively soliciting applications for that grade. And it sucks but I understand that the school is trying to fill a specific spot and my DS isn’t right for that spot.

So you can drop out but the school may not be able to easily fill the spot while hitting their other goals.

Don’t know how that influences “duty to mitigate”. Maybe school says there is not an equivalent student seeking admission.

OP, try and get out your contract and let us know what happens. Might be helpful for the next person.

It means if the school has a qualified applicant ready, willing, and able to pay in full before the school year starts, then there aren’t any damages. The fact that the applicant was waitlisted rather than denied is a strong indicator that the candidate is qualified, even if the candidate isn’t the school’s first choice.

It’s just like landlords who have a tenant who broke the lease. If an applicant who meets objective criteria (ie passes credit and background check) is willing to sign a lease, the landlord can reject that applicant but then waives the right to seek damages from the tenant.

You may get there, but this would be in the context of a lawsuit, not you trying to explain to the school whose contract you breached that they don't have damages. They are going to sue you.

Not really. It would be in the context of their in house or outside counsel advising them of the likelihood of success and thus whether it’s worth going after a family for tuition.

That's not how that works. It takes nothing for a school to send out a claim letter with an intent to sue and then a complaint if their letter isn't answered. They aren't hiring counsel for this - they have a firm that does this when nececessary as part of whatever other legal responsibilities they have to the school. They are just going to send the letter and/or complaint and see what happens next. They wouldn't even bother having contracts if they weren't willing to enforce them.

I’m literally a plaintiff lawyer and your response demonstrates that you don’t know anything. A demand letter isn’t a lawsuit and doesn’t mean anything. It still costs the school money to write and send (probably a couple thousand) because they’re paying the firm they work with to send this. They also have to pay to write the complaint. All of these costs plus the likelihood of a successful defense by the plaintiffs are factored into the school’s decision about whether to take legal action to enforce their contract.