Illinois Admissions Scandal: The Lawsuit

A rejected applicant has filed a suit -- hoping for a class action -- against the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign over its now defunct "clout" admissions system of favoring candidates with political connections, the Chicago Tribune reported. The suit seeks more than $5 million in damages on behalf of all "non-clout" applicants who were rejected from 1999 to 2009. The plaintiff, who was wait-listed and then rejected, noted that the admissions materials he reviewed before applying did not indicate that any preferences would be based on political connections. University officials declined to comment, but have hired a law firm in anticipation of such suits.