{"slug":"trump-university-fraud-25-million-settlement","title":"Trump University: $25 Million Fraud Settlement, Students Defrauded of Thousands","date":"2005-01-01","lastUpdated":"2016-11-18","description":"Trump University operated from 2005 to 2011, charging students up to $35,000 for real estate seminars and mentorship programs that promised to teach Trump's personal investing secrets. The New York Attorney General filed a $40 million civil fraud suit in 2013; former students filed class action suits alleging fraud and false advertising. In November 2016, days after the presidential election, Trump agreed to pay $25 million to settle three lawsuits. Trump had previously said he would never settle, calling the cases 'garbage.' The settlement included no admission of wrongdoing.","summary":"Trump University was not an accredited university and did not grant degrees. It marketed heavily using Trump's image and promises that students would learn from Trump's 'handpicked instructors.' Playbooks obtained by Washington Post showed instructors were coached to identify students' financial resources and upsell them to higher tiers; students were encouraged to raise credit card limits to pay for more expensive packages. Former employees testified to high-pressure sales tactics. The $25 million settlement resolved claims by approximately 6,000 students and was approved by a federal judge in April 2017.","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 $25 Million Settlement in Trump University Fraud Cases","publisher":"The New York Times"},{"url":"https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/06/02/trump-university-the-inside-story-of-a-major-american-scam/","title":"Trump University — the inside story of a major American scam","publisher":"The Washington Post"},{"url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/01/us/politics/trump-university-lawsuit-playbook.html","title":"Playbooks Revealed at Trump University Trial","publisher":"The New York Times"},{"url":"https://apnews.com/article/trump-university-settlement-fraud","title":"Trump agrees to $25 million Trump University settlement","publisher":"The Associated Press"}],"draft":false,"status":"published","tags":["Trump-University","fraud","pre-presidency","settlement","students","scam"],"relatedEntries":[],"timeline":[{"date":"2005-01-01","title":"Trump University founded","summary":"Trump University is founded. It is not an accredited institution and cannot award degrees. New York state requires it to stop calling itself a university. It operates as 'The Trump Entrepreneur Initiative' in New York."},{"date":"2010-01-01","title":"High-pressure sales tactics documented","summary":"Former employees and students begin describing high-pressure sales tactics, with instructors encouraged to identify financial resources and upsell students to higher tiers regardless of their circumstances. Some elderly students spend retirement savings on the Gold Elite package."},{"date":"2011-01-01","title":"Trump University ceases operations","summary":"Trump University stops taking students. More than 6,000 students had paid for various programs, with the most expensive costing $35,000."},{"date":"2013-08-24","title":"New York AG files $40 million fraud suit","summary":"New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman files a $40 million civil fraud suit against Trump University, Trump, and the Trump Organization, alleging they defrauded students through false promises and high-pressure sales tactics."},{"date":"2016-05-27","title":"Instructor playbooks released","summary":"A federal judge orders the release of Trump University's instructor playbooks. They document the 'pain funnel' technique for identifying financial vulnerabilities and the upselling strategy from free events to $35,000 packages."},{"date":"2016-11-18","title":"Trump agrees to $25 million settlement","summary":"Ten days after winning the presidential election, Trump agrees to pay $25 million to settle three fraud lawsuits — having previously said he would never settle and called the cases 'garbage.' No admission of wrongdoing is included. The settlement is approved by a federal judge in April 2017."}],"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 6,000 students who paid up to $35,000 for Trump University programs; elderly students who were pressured to spend retirement savings","structuredPerpetrators":[{"name":"Donald Trump","role":"Founder and public face of Trump University; named defendant in fraud suits","institution":"Trump University / Trump Organization"}],"updateLog":[{"date":"2016-11-18","summary":"Updated with settlement."}]}}