Menu
Montecito
Pac Premier
Giving Guide
Loading...
You are here:  Home  >  Top Stories  >  Current Article

New suit hits Brooks Institute

By   /   Monday, November 8th, 2010  /   Comments Off on New suit hits Brooks Institute

    Print       Email

A former Brooks Institute of Photography student and his family are suing the school’s parent company and lender Sallie Mae, alleging that after he defaulted his student loans ballooned from $120,445 to more than $227,000 based on hidden terms and fees.

The former student, Todd Marek, is suing Sallie Mae and two debt collectors in Ventura County Superior Court. His mother, Pamela Marek-Sykes, and his grandmother, Edna Benis, are suing those companies and Career Education Corp., the Chicago-area company that owns Brooks Institute. Brooks has campuses in Ventura and Santa Barbara.

Todd Marek’s lawsuit alleges that his liabilities exploded after he defaulted because of loan terms that were changed without his consent and unreasonable fees from debt collectors.

His allegations are against Sallie Mae, the largest originator of federally backed loans until this summer, when the federal government became the sole originator of those loans. Career Education Corp., Brooks’ parent, is named in the suit filed by Benis and Mare-Sykes, though it is not specifically accused of anything.

The two lawsuits come as U.S. education officials have clamped down on both for-profit education companies like Career Education and private student loan firms.

The full version of this article is only available in the print edition. To view everything the Business Times offers, see this week’s print version or SUBSCRIBE to the print edition for $49.99 today.

    Print       Email