Coronavirus: UK students seek go-ahead for lawsuit over Covid-19, strikes disruption
- More than 3,000 current and former students of University College London are suing for breach of contract, in a case that could be followed by others
- Lawyer says students were promised ‘in-person, on-campus tuition’ but received online learning during the pandemic, as well as being affected by strikes
Thousands of university students asked London’s High Court on Wednesday to give the go-ahead to a mass lawsuit against University College London (UCL) over disruption to their studies caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and strikes.
More than 3,000 current and former students – who paid at least £9,250 (US$11,482) a year – are suing UCL for breach of contract, in a case which could be followed by similar litigation against other British universities.
UCL says it did not breach its contract with students. The university argues it was permitted to change or cancel any part of its courses due to circumstances beyond its control, such as the pandemic and consequent lockdown.
Lawyers running the case against UCL say about 100,000 students from 18 universities including UCL have signed up to bring legal action.
Universities across the United Kingdom moved to online learning during the pandemic, with students also being denied access to teaching facilities such as libraries.