Lincoln Tech Lawsuit Loan Forgiveness: Relief Through the Sweet v Cardona Settlement

If you're a former student of Lincoln Tech, you might be eligible for loan forgiveness thanks to the Sweet v Cardona settlement. This settlement provides relief to students who were misled by the college's advertising and recruitment practices.

The Sweet v Cardona settlement is a result of a class-action lawsuit filed against Lincoln Tech and its parent company, Career Education Corporation. The lawsuit alleged that the college made false claims about its job placement rates and career services.

As part of the settlement, former students may be eligible for loan forgiveness of up to 80% of their outstanding federal student loans. This can be a huge relief for those who were struggling to make payments.

To qualify, students must have attended Lincoln Tech between 2010 and 2019 and have taken out federal student loans to finance their education.

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If you're wondering who qualifies for relief under the Lincoln Tech lawsuit loan forgiveness, the answer lies in the Sweet v. Cardona settlement. This settlement provides full relief, including student loan forgiveness, payment refunds, and credit repair, to 200,000 borrowers who filed before June 2022 and attended one of about 150 mostly for-profit schools involved in the case.

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Lincoln Technical Institute is not explicitly listed among the schools involved in the settlement, but it's worth noting that borrowers have pending claims against schools not on the list. If you attended Lincoln Tech, you may still be eligible for relief under the borrower defense program.

To qualify for relief, you'll need to check if your school has been the subject of legal action by the federal government, state attorneys general, or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. If your loans were disbursed before July 1, 2020, a judgment against your school can be grounds for a successful borrower defense.

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The Sweet v. Cardona settlement is a game-changer for many student loan borrowers. On Nov. 16, 2022, a federal judge in California gave approval to the settlement, which will provide up to 264,000 student loan borrowers with at least $6 billion in debt relief.

The settlement specifically targets borrowers who attended one of about 150 mostly for-profit schools involved in the case. These schools include Al Collins Graphic Design School, All-State Career School, and Allentown Business School, among many others.

Here's a list of some of the schools that are included in the settlement:

The settlement provides full relief, including student loan forgiveness, payment refunds, and credit repair to 200,000 borrowers who filed before June 2022.

If you think your school misled you about your education program, you might qualify for borrower defense student loan forgiveness. This program is for federal loans only, so private loans are not eligible.

To qualify, your school must have intentionally misled you, causing harm that warrants full discharge of your loans. This can happen even if your school closed or if you're eligible for other loan forgiveness programs.

You can submit a claim even if your school is still open, and you can't submit a claim for costs you paid out of pocket. For help with your claim, find local legal clinics through nonprofits, law schools, city services, or legal aid groups.

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To apply for borrower defense loan forgiveness, you'll need to submit a claim through the Federal Student Aid office's website. This process typically takes around three hours to complete, including preparation time.

The Department of Education has three years to make a decision on your application, but you may receive a notification much sooner via email.

To strengthen your claim, gather evidence of your school's misrepresentations, such as:

You can submit a claim even if your school closed, and you may be eligible for other loan forgiveness programs. However, private loans and out-of-pocket costs are not eligible.

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To submit a borrower defense loan discharge application, you'll need to head to the Federal Student Aid office's website. An application takes about three hours to complete, including preparation time.

You'll need to submit a detailed explanation of why your loans might qualify for discharge, along with any supporting evidence. This could include actual licensure passage rates, employment rates, and other metrics that differ from what the school advertised.

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To strengthen your claim, it's essential to gather evidence of dishonest representation by the school, such as misrepresenting held certifications or approval for programs. You can also use evidence of dishonest representations regarding financial assistance, graduate placement rates, and salaries.

The Department of Education has three years to make a decision on your application, but you may receive a notification much sooner than that. Notifications are sent out via email, so be sure to keep an eye on your inbox.

Here are some examples of dishonest representations that might qualify you for borrower defense student loan forgiveness:

If you're part of the decision group, you'll receive a decision from the Education Department on a staggered basis. The timeline for decision notifications varies depending on when you submitted your borrower defense application.

Between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2017, decisions must be made no later than July 28, 2023. If you submitted your application between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2018, you'll receive a decision no later than January 28, 2024.

Here's a breakdown of the notification deadlines for the decision group:

If your application is approved, you'll receive relief within one year of notification. Borrowers in this group whose decision notifications arrive after the deadline or not at all are also entitled to full, automatic relief.

If your application is denied, don't worry, you're not out of luck. You have the right to appeal and potentially get your loans forgiven.

If your borrower defense application was initially denied between December 2019 and October 2020, the Education Department is rescinding that denial and you will be treated as a member of the Sweet v. Cardona class.

You have six months from the day you get a "revise and resubmit" notice to resubmit your application. If your application is denied a second time, you may challenge the decision in federal court.

The Sweet v. Cardona settlement provides relief to 200,000 borrowers who filed before June 2022 and attended one of about 150 mostly for-profit schools involved in the case.

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Here's a list of some of the schools included in the Sweet v. Cardona settlement:

If you're eligible for the Sweet v. Cardona relief, but your application doesn't meet approval standards, the Department will send you a "revise and resubmit" notice explaining why your application was denied.