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Cornell, MIT Win Appeal Bid in $1.7 Billion Financial Aid Case

By  |  September 1, 2026
Cornell, MIT Win Appeal Bid in $1.7 Billion Financial Aid Case

Cornell University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and three other universities can challenge a ruling that expanded a closely watched antitrust case over financial aid to roughly 200,000 current and former students, according to reporting by The Cornell Daily Sun.

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    The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit on Aug. 24 granted Cornell, MIT, the University of Pennsylvania, Georgetown University and the University of Notre Dame permission to appeal a federal judge’s decision certifying the group of students as a class, The Cornell Daily Sun reported. The ruling could affect the potential financial exposure facing the five schools, which are the remaining defendants in litigation originally brought against 17 universities.

    The dispute stems from Henry et al. v. Brown University et al., a lawsuit filed in 2022 alleging that some of the nation’s most selective universities improperly coordinated financial-aid practices through the 568 Presidents Group. The plaintiffs contend that the arrangement restrained competition for financial aid and benefited wealthier students in violation of federal antitrust law, according to The Cornell Daily Sun.

    The stakes increased sharply after the district court certified the class. Citing court records, The Cornell Daily Sun reported that the certification decision relied in part on a regression analysis prepared by an expert for the plaintiffs. The analysis increased the estimated number of students who suffered economic harm and pushed potential damages from about $100,000 to more than $1.7 billion.

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    Related: Judge Lets Antitrust Case Against 32 US Universities Move Forward

    The universities have challenged the statistical methodology underlying that calculation. Their attorneys argued that the expert’s model produced implausible fluctuations in estimates of what students were charged from year to year, according to The Cornell Daily Sun.

    The Seventh Circuit’s decision allows the universities to contest whether U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly sufficiently scrutinized that analysis before certifying the class, the publication reported. A successful challenge could result in the roughly 200,000-member class being reduced or losing class certification altogether.

    The litigation has already generated substantial settlements. Twelve universities named in the original case reached agreements totaling nearly $320 million between 2023 and 2025, according to The Cornell Daily Sun. Some settlement payments were distributed to Cornell students and alumni during the summer even though Cornell itself remains a defendant.

    Cornell, Penn, MIT, Georgetown and Notre Dame are now the only universities still defending the case, the publication reported.

    Kennelly has scheduled a trial to begin Nov. 4, according to The Cornell Daily Sun. A Cornell spokesperson declined to comment to the newspaper on the latest development.

    Related: The Cornell Daily Sun