{"slug":"trump-pre-presidency-trump-university-fraud","title":"Trump University: Fraud Settlement After Defrauding Students of $40 Million","date":"2005-05-23","lastUpdated":"2016-11-18","description":"Trump University operated from 2005 to 2010, marketing itself as an elite real estate investment education program. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman sued Trump in 2013 for fraud, seeking $40 million on behalf of 5,000 students who paid thousands to tens of thousands of dollars for seminars that delivered little of what was promised. Three class action lawsuits were also filed. On November 18, 2016 — ten days after Trump won the election — Trump agreed to pay $25 million to settle all three lawsuits, while admitting no wrongdoing.","summary":"Trump University was not a real university — it had no degree programs, no accreditation, and was not approved to use the word 'university' in New York. Students paid from $1,495 for a preview seminar to $35,000 for a 'Trump Elite' mentorship package. Former employees provided sworn declarations that they were instructed to aggressively upsell students to higher-priced programs and use high-pressure sales tactics. Student evaluation forms praised instructors at the time — but these were collected before students could assess outcomes. Former Trump University president Michael Sexton acknowledged the program was selling a brand, not education. Trump had selected none of the instructors himself, contradicting his marketing claims.","category":"corruption","severity":"major","ongoing":false,"sources":[{"url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/19/us/politics/trump-university-settlement.html","title":"Trump Agrees to Pay $25 Million in Trump University Settlement","publisher":"The New York Times"},{"url":"https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-university-fraud-settlement-2016/2016/11/18/story.html","title":"Trump University settles fraud claims for $25 million","publisher":"The Washington Post"},{"url":"https://apnews.com/article/trump-university-settlement-25-million","title":"Trump settles Trump University fraud lawsuits for $25 million","publisher":"The Associated Press"},{"url":"https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2016/attorney-general-schneiderman-announces-historic-25-million-settlement-trump","title":"Attorney General Schneiderman Announces Historic $25 Million Settlement with Trump University","publisher":"New York Attorney General's Office"}],"draft":false,"status":"published","tags":["Trump-University","fraud","pre-presidency","corruption","Schneiderman","settlement"],"relatedEntries":[],"timeline":[{"date":"2005-05-23","title":"Trump University launches — not an accredited institution","summary":"Trump University launches with marketing materials featuring Trump claiming to have handpicked instructors. The program is not accredited, offers no degrees, and is not authorized to use the word 'university' in New York. It will operate until 2010."},{"date":"2010-01-01","title":"Trump University ceases operations","summary":"Trump University stops operating after five years. Approximately 5,000 students have paid between $1,495 and $35,000. Student complaints have accumulated and regulatory scrutiny has increased."},{"date":"2013-08-24","title":"New York AG Schneiderman files $40M fraud suit","summary":"New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman files a $40 million civil fraud lawsuit against Trump, Trump University, and related entities, alleging deceptive practices and false advertising targeting approximately 5,000 students."},{"date":"2015-01-01","title":"Three class action lawsuits filed — federal courts","summary":"Three separate class action lawsuits are filed in federal court on behalf of Trump University students. Two are in Southern California, one in New York. They proceed in parallel with the NY AG case."},{"date":"2016-06-01","title":"Trump attacks Judge Curiel — racist comments","summary":"Trump publicly attacks presiding Judge Gonzalo Curiel, claiming he cannot be fair due to his Mexican heritage. Curiel was born in Indiana. Paul Ryan calls it textbook racism. Trump maintains the attacks for weeks."},{"date":"2016-11-18","title":"Trump agrees to $25M settlement — ten days after election","summary":"Ten days after winning the presidency, Trump agrees to settle all three Trump University lawsuits for $25 million. He admits no wrongdoing. He had previously publicly vowed never to settle. The settlement provides compensation to approximately 5,000 defrauded students."}],"location":{"name":"New York, NY","lat":40.7128,"lng":-74.006},"custom":{"era":"pre-presidency","posture":"judicial-finding","warCrimeClassification":"enabling","internationalLaw":[],"iccRelevance":false,"victims":"Approximately 5,000 students who paid between $1,495 and $35,000 for Trump University programs; many took on debt or used retirement savings; elderly and low-income students were disproportionately targeted by high-pressure sales","structuredPerpetrators":[{"name":"Donald Trump","role":"Founder; personally appeared in marketing materials claiming to have handpicked instructors; lent his name and image to a program employees later testified used aggressive deceptive sales tactics","institution":"Trump University / Trump Organization"}],"updateLog":[{"date":"2016-11-18","summary":"Updated with settlement details."}]}}