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Culinary School Lawsuits                      

In light of economic insecurities affecting our nation's unemployment rate, post-high school students are increasingly turning to trade-based educations instead of pursuing college degrees in the hopes of securing a more stable career path. However, a number of former culinary school students have called foul, claiming that the culinary schools they attended roped them in with promises of immediate placement into high-paying positions after graduation which never came through. Now that they have graduated, they are burdened with hefty student loans and few job prospects. If you believe you were misled by your culinary school with promises that you would quickly be able to pay off your loans after graduation, you could be entitled to compensation in a culinary school lawsuit.

Why are Former Students Suing Culinary Schools?

Multiple former students have filed culinary school fraud lawsuits against Le Cordon Bleu schools, owned by Career Education Corp. of Illinois. These plaintiffs claim that admissions counselors working for these schools "oversold" them on the benefits of a culinary career by touting false job placement rates and promising unrealistic wages immediately after graduation.

According to an article appearing online in the Bay Area paper SFWeekly, one such Career Education-run school is the California Culinary Academy. In a culinary school lawsuit, a former student claimed that he was enticed to contact the school after seeing a television commercial promising top-level, glamorous jobs for chefs. An admissions counselor for the school later told him that graduates could count on a 97-percent graduation rate and helped him sign on for thousands in student loans. The student later found that the school had a "horrible reputation among Bay Area restaurateurs for churning out unskilled job applicants" and that former students are forced to work menial jobs to repay their loans. In fact, according to a 2010 report by the Department of Education, former CCA students only have a 51 percent loan repayment rate because they are chronically unemployed in their chosen industry.

Culinary School Lawsuit Consultations

The student mentioned above is not alone: at least two other culinary schools run by Career Education are facing lawsuits brought by former students who claim they were fooled by deceptive advertising practices and aggressive recruiters. If you believe you were wrongfully lured into attending a culinary academy by promises of career placement that were unrealistic, you could be entitled to compensation for your damages. Some plaintiffs have received compensation not only for tuition costs, but also for emotional distress and lost opportunity. To learn more about potential compensation in a culinary school lawsuit, contact an experienced attorney for a free legal consultation.