On Sept. 16, 2014, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sued Corinthian Colleges, Inc., owner of Everest, Heald, and WyoTech, for using illegal tactics to induce students into taking out private student loans called Genesis loans and EducationPlus loans.
The CFPB’s lawsuit also alleges that Corinthian violated the law by harassing borrowers to make payments by pulling students from class and preventing them from attending class, registering, graduating, and receiving a diploma.
In addition, Zenith Education, a subsidiary of ECMC Group, announced that it would be purchasing a substantial number of Everest and WyoTech campuses from Corinthian. The CFPB announced that it will work with the United States Department of Education and ECMC to secure approximately $480 million in debt relief for borrowers who took out Corinthian College’s private student loans to enroll at Corinthian-owned schools. If your school is Corinthian-owned and not bought by Zenith Education, you may still benefit from the debt relief of this special bulletin.
If you previously attended or currently attend a Corinthian-owned school, there is nothing that you need to do at this time. Your loan servicer (the company that collects payments from you) will notify you if this special bulletin applies to you, as well as any remaining balance you may owe on your private student loans. Make certain your loan servicer has your most recent contact information.
As a part of the agreement with the CFPB, credit reporting agencies will receive instructions to delete any existing negative credit reporting information from borrowers’ credit reports. If your loan qualifies, this will happen automatically. While this special bulletin does not affect your responsibility for repaying your private and federal student loans, it will lead to substantial and immediate relief for many borrowers. To protect your credit record, you should continue to make payments on remaining loan balances.
If you have any questions concerning these matters, call the Fort Irwin Legal Assistance Office for an appointment at 380-5321. The office’s days and hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with Thursday hours of 1 to 4 p.m. The office is located in building 230 on C Avenue.
