October 10, 2002 Pupils file suit vs. Life MARIETTA ã Five students have filed a lawsuit against Life University claiming the school fail 10/10/02 By Phillip Giltman Marietta Daily Journal Staff Writer MARIETTA ã Five students have filed a lawsuit against Life University claiming the school failed to take the necessary steps to maintain its chiropractic accreditation. „We feel these students paid for something they didn¼t get,¾ Atlanta attorney Cary King said Wednesday. „They paid for a quality chiropractic education that would allow them to sit for and pass all national and state board examinations, and now they are faced with a situation where they can¼t sit for the boards, and they may have to go to another chiropractic school to complete their education. Neither option is good for them.¾ Tuition to receive a chiropractic diploma at the Marietta university can top $60,000 ã roughly $4,400 per quarter for a 14-quarter education. In six counts, the lawsuit claims that Life and its founder, Dr. Sid Williams, neglected „to take corrective action and/or institute policies at (Life) which would ensure that the school did not lose its accreditation.¾ With pressure from the university¼s board of trustees, Williams resigned as president of the school in July. In June, the school was stripped of its chiropractic accreditation. The university has appealed the revocation and remains accredited until word from the Arizona-based Council on Chiropractic Accreditation. A chiropractic degree from an unaccredited university is virtually worthless. King said an additional lawsuit, which includes nine plantiffs, will be filed against Life within a week asserting similar allegations. Life spokesman Will Hurst said he could not comment on the lawsuit because of the Family Records Privacy Act but said that Life is presently accredited and the claims seem untimely. „The university is accredited today, so any claim of damage on the loss of accreditation is premature,¾ he said. Life could receive word on their appeal as soon as Oct. 20 when university officials are scheduled to meet with the CCE. Dr. Sid Williams was unavailable for comment Wednesday evening. King said it was too early to say how much money it could cost Life University should they win the lawsuit, but plantiffs are asking for their tuition reimbursed either in whole or in part, expenses of relocation for anyone who has to transfer to another school, attorney fees and punitive damages. „It was either reckless the way Life handled the CCE accreditation issue or it was negligence,¾ he said. The suit, which was filed Sept. 30 by plantiffs Peter Scire, Joshua Hess, Rodney Shultz, Chris Faler and Anthony Stangelli, was filed in Cobb County Superior Court. King said even if the school regains its accreditation, plantiffs will still be able to sue for damages. The CCE would not comment on the appeal and said it was not aware of the recent lawsuit. King said Life officials will have 30 days to file a response to the lawsuit and he expects to begin taking depositions within the next 45 days. King said the whole lawsuit could take two years. Once next week¼s lawsuit is filed, King¼s law firm, Slater & King, will have four pending law suits against Life University. The two other suits allege the plantiffs, former Life employees, were working in a hostile environment under Williams. Student enrollment dropped 38 percent at Life University from last fall, a loss of about $5 million dollars to the institution. The university¼s total budget for the 2000 fiscal year was nearly $50 million, according to the most recent IRS filings. Life recorded a net loss of $2.4 million for that fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30, 2000. The university also received a warning sanction from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools back in December. SACS also refused to renew Life¼s accreditation for a 10-year period but gave the school a one-year extension. pgiltman@mdjonline.com