Summary: The Texas Wesleyan University School of Law students that filed a suit to require Texas A&M to issue them new diplomas have been turned down, The National Law Journal reports.
Texas A&M University acquired Texas Wesleyan University School of Law in 2013. Graduates of Wesleyan wanted the Texas A&M University School of Law to issue them new diplomas with the A&M name on them. Their request has been turned down by a U.S. District Judge in the Northern District of Texas, The National Law Journal reports.
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Judge John McBryde rejected the proposed class action from Wesleyan law alumni on the lack of evidence that Texas A&M violated federal law. Texas A&M wasn’t willing to issue new diplomas and give them the benefits earned by A&M alums just because the school bought Wesleyan.
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McBryde wrote in his order, “Aside from mentioning in a conclusory fashion that they have been denied due process and equal protection, plaintiffs have not alleged any facts to support the allegations. They allege ‘unequal and irrational treatment,’ but admit that they are not in the same category as those they want to be treated like.”
The plaintiffs will probably not appeal the decision but may file a complaint with the American Bar Association, seeking a reference to Texas Wesleyan next to Texas A&M. The named plaintiffs in the suit include 33 alumni who graduated from the Fort Worth law school between 1994 and 2013. They filed on behalf of around 3,000 other graduates.
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The basis for their suit was claiming that their job prospects were damaged since Wesleyan no longer appears as an ABA-accredited law school and they can’t claim Texas A&M. They argued that they “have lost the ability to easily show that their juris doctor degrees are valid to potential employers and clients, and their law school is no longer easily located on many lists of accredited law schools.” The plaintiffs have also had trouble registering for LL.M. courses, refinancing school loans, accessing the law library after hours and gaining admission by motion in other states.
McBryde continued in his note, “At best, plaintiffs wish that Wesleyan Defendants had done something to assure that A&M would acknowledge them as graduates.”
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