Suit Argues New Angle In Claim Of For-Profit College Fraud

WASHINGTON (AP) — A lawsuit in federal court seeks to provide a new legal remedy for students frustrated with the Education Department's inaction on claims seeking loan forgiveness.

Tens of thousands of students say they have been defrauded by for-profit colleges. Two people who attended a for-profit college in New York, Sanford-Brown Institute, filed suit there Sunday in an effort to have their student loans erased.

Their lawsuit against the school and the Education Department cites federal and state law that prohibits fraud as well as the contract they signed with their school. Previous lawsuits invoked the department's own regulations in their search for loan relief.

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has stalled consideration of similar claims as her department rewrites Obama administration rules designed to boost protections for students defrauded by schools.