Fifth Circuit Ends SMU Student’s Quest for Covid-19 Refund

A Southern Methodist University student’s suit seeking a tuition refund for the time he didn’t attend classes in-person during the Covid-19 pandemic came to an abrupt end when the Texas Supreme Court told the Fifth Circuit that a state law immunizing the school from the lawsuit didn’t violate the state’s Constitution.

As a result of the pandemic, a number of students sued their universities for breach of contract after they were forced to attend classes online and denied the full college experience. Luke Hogan was one such student. But Texas passed the Pandemic Liability Protection Act that immunized educational institutions ...