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Charlotte School of Law no longer has license to operate, may shut down

By Elsa Gillis
By Elsa Gillis

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It's the latest in the troubled saga of the Charlotte School of Law.

"It's very significant for the school and it's also very significant for the students," said Clare McCan, education policy analyst.

As of August 11th, the school's license to operate expired.

According to an official with the UNC Board of Governors, the school did not meet all of the requirements set by the Department of Education, necessary for students to get federal loans.

This is the information Channel 9 received from a spokesperson for UNC:

"The University of North Carolina's (UNC) statutory authority is to license higher education institutions. It does not determine or take action to close institutions.

The Charlotte School of Law (CSL), which has been licensed by UNC to operate in North Carolina since 2005.  Since June 21, 2017, CSL has been operating on a restricted license that would expire by August 10, 2017 should certain conditions not be met.  One condition is that the U.S. Department of Education (DoED) must determine that CSL students may participate in Title IV federal loan programs, which is addressed in section 4(b) of the June 21 license decision.

It's our understanding that CSL is actively working with DoED to ensure the school can participate in the Title IV loan program, but that CSL has not yet met all of the requirements of DoED, and DoED therefore has not restored CSL to participation in Title IV loan programs.

Therefore, as of today, according to the provisions of the June 21 license restriction, CSL's license expired due to the failure to meet condition 4(b). CSL has requested that the University now consider extending the time to meet the conditions in the restricted license, which would require further action by the Board of Governors.

Further updates will be provided if action is taken."

McCan said it's unclear if the school will open this fall.

"While the school's license is revoked, it is not allowed to operate in the state, and students should be pursuing all of their options,” McCan said.

Channel 9's past coverage of Charlotte School of Law troubles:

According to officials, the school has asked for an extension to meet the requirements, which is information the dean confirmed in an email to students.

But the email also claimed that the Board of Governors, "has not declared that CSL's license has expired" - even though the board told Channel 9 it clearly has.

The school sent Channel 9 this statement:

"Charlotte School of Law is actively working to meet the conditions set out by our state licensing authority and that authority is aware of our progress. Accordingly, CSL has asked the UNC Board for an extension of time to meet all conditions set, as we believe we will be able to demonstrate compliance in short order."

Lee Robertson, president of the CSL Alumni Association said the latest news is disappointing, but he is confident it will get back on track.

"It's extremely disappointing. We know the administration and the law school have been working very hard and diligently over the past few months to get things back on track, we were hopeful it was moving in that direction," Robertson said. "We're concerned about the success of our graduates and the success of our students and their ability to complete their education... I don't think closing the school helps anyone."

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